A slice of cake

It is so near Hari Raya and usually this time of the year, I'd be busy baking and packing, baking and packing and crashing out during the public holidays. This year I did not take orders but made a huge banana walnut cake as a treat for the office department in lieu of hari raya greeting cards.

Savoury Baking

Hubby was busy during the weekend at a conference so I decided to make a simple chicken pie to treat myself during lunch. Extremely simple this one and taste oh so good. Nothing beats a homemade pie with loads of carrots, potatoes, chicken and boiled eggs. Satisfied.......

A Break

I do apologise to the few people whom I know check this blog every now and then, for not updating it these couple of months. I am on a break for at least a year not because I am giving up the baking but because of personal reasons. So don't give up on me yet, I will try to put in some updates in the near future.

Cookie Jar

The office cookie jar is full. Chocolate chip cookies with pecans is the cookie of the day.

Craving for vanilla sponge

Every now and then, I get a specific craving for sponge. This time I wanted sponge with fruits. Instead of purchasing a single slice from the bakery I decided why not make a whole cake for the department. This was light and lovely, vanilla sponge layered with fresh cream and mandarins. The almonds on the side was a real pain to attach but superb to eat.

Crashing Batman

Poor poor batman. The request was for a 2 tiered lemon cake with batman on it. It was a beautiful regal cake but when I brought it to the destination, it crashed. Crashed badly as the lemon cake was too soft to withstand the upper tier notwithstanding the support to the structure I had placed inside the cake. Anyways, good thing the party was the next day and I cancelled all plans that night (day of the crash) to focus on completing another 2 tiered cake ( picture attached) but this time butter cake as it is a lot sturdier than the fluffy lemon. Glad the party liked it.*phew*

YSY goodbye cupcakes

A friend of mine was leaving to Singapore to work. The news came in short notice and I could not attend her farewell. So here's to a greener pastures in Singapore YSY!!!

Cheesecake with a base gone wrong

This was actually a really really yummy rich cheesecake. Only downside was the oreo cookie base was ruined when water seeped through the foil covering the springform pan and created havoc ( as you can see from the picture). We ate it anyway in the office. Will definitely make it again but will make sure I be OCD and really wrap the pan properly. Was too tired when I made this late one night as I was craving cheesecake...... I knew the risks when I saw the water going in but left it anyway. Lesson learnt.

Strawberry Trifle

I had extras of a couple of ingredients which called out for a Strawberry Trifle. Egg yolks from the mango pavlova, strawberries that I could not resist buying as they were too beautiful and some sponge fingers. This turned out really good. Most recipes (especially from foreign cookbooks) recommend putting liquor to soak the sponge, but given that I need to have this alchohol free, I decided to do a strawberry puree to soak the sponge. Was a little hesistant but this turned out beautiful as the tang of the strawberry really broke the sweetness in the custard. A keeper.

Mother's Day

Mother's Day is fast approaching and had a request for a lemon cake with flowers on top. The picture that was given to me was done in fondant but due to the "freshness" of the lemon and cream used in this cake, refridgeration is not encouraged. So a compromise, lemon cake with lemon buttercream with fondant flowers. Very motherly. Oh some matching cupcakes to go with it too.

Mango Pavlova

I managed to find some really nice mangoes and decided to make a mango passionfruit pavlova. Only problem is when I cut open the passionfruits this morning, they were overriped so it will be just mango with mascarpone on a bed of crispy chewy pavlova.

Rock Star Baby Shower

Bollywood Cake Revisited

A strawberry chocolate cake was requested with a bollywood theme. I had ideas initially to use fondant to carry out the design but then thought about it further, the cream is made out of fresh strawberry puree and may not be good to sit it outside. However, fondant does not sit well in the fridge as the condensation will cause it to become sticky. So settled for buttercream frosting. I am quite happy with the way it turned out, I could have made it into a more girly cake but the instructions were to depart from that.

Snake and Ladders

Had a request for a snake and ladders cake for a 5 year old. This was quite tedious with having to cut out each square and different elements of the cake. Hope the birthday boy likes it.

Caleb's Full Moon

A "thank you" gift actually ordered by a friend for those who had given her gifts and well wishes on the birth of her son. Simple but different, some blue M&Ms, and 2 sugar cookies.

Purple and Blue Whimsical Wedding Cake

I know same picture of the same cake but this is one of my favourite cakes now. A little dissapointed with the sugarpaste that dimpled a little but then again as one famous baker said " there can never be a perfect cake".

Blackforest slices

Had wanted to have blackforest for awhile but was not too keen in those you get in most old time bakeries where they stinge on cherries and lather on too much cream. Made this ina rush over the weekend. I had one hour in between appointments, manage to whip up the sponge and put in chunks of chocolate and cherries in between chocolate buttercream. *Craving satisfied*

February and March Babies - Office Birthdays

A sky high hummingbird cake for birthday celebration at the office today. It has been awhile since I attended a class that taught amongst other recipes, the Hummingbird Cake. Not easy to find this cake but who knows, will it be the next Red Velvet? I did not have the urge to instantly try the recipe I learnt as I felt the colour of the cake did not turn out nice. So upon stumbling on another recipe for this cake, I made this for the celebration today.

Hummingbird cake is similar in taste and texture to the familiar carrot cake but the ingredients are different. There is banana, pineapple, coconut and cinnamon in this hearty cake. This may be a keeper but only when I feel like it.

Lemon cake with Fresh Blueberries

A light luscious lemon cake with fresh blueberries. The lemon cream is a new recipe, it is like clouds of tangy lemons on a cake. Lovely. Have uploaded a close of the the sprinkles and the cross section of the cake. If you are a lemon lover, this is for you!

Cupcakes to say "thank you"

We had been working really hard the past couple of weeks. The project was finally delivered end of last week. So some cupcakes to thank the team.