Monday, February 15, 2010

Another Fondant cake

The second day at PC 102 Basic. Another busy and excited day...today we're going to decorate a square cake with bow and figurine. Fran said 102 class is the hardest class where we had to cover a square cake with fondant. Great I thought...with beginner like me I'd be struggle...:-( 80 percent of today's students were professional cake decorator and average they had more than 3 years of cake decorating experience...SSSScary...Surprisingly I survived...hohoho...


This was a valentine's cake for my husband...just to let him know that I really appreciate of what he did especially these 2 days...:-) Love you, Babe...

Ganaching and covering square cake was really a challenge especially for if you want to get a really sharp corner. Today the weather was not that perfect for fondant, it was so humid...the fondant became sticky and tear easily. We worked 1 1/2 hours over time today...it was so tired but luckily we all could finish the decoration. My conclucion after the course...I need lots of practice in ganaching and covering the cake...lots of...lots of practice...lots of...lots of cakes...I don't even know how to finish the cakes.
Finished with the course, now I start planning for Audrey's birthday cake...

Rachel's birthday cake

Yeah...it's time for cake decoration class. This was my first cake decoration class and I was so excited. I actually enrolled for the course last year and I didn't realize that 14 of February was first day of Chinese new year. In our tradition the night before Chinese new year is the night where you have a big banquet. And this year, I had to attend my classes. Too bad I didn't have time to prepare for the banquet. Luckily, my husband wasn't upset and kind enough to baby sit the children. Thanks darling...you rocks....:-)
13 of February was my first class on 101 basic with Planet cake...we made exploding cake using fondant...it was really fun and tiring. And Rachel, my niece birthday was on the 14 so I gave the cake to her for her birthday cake. Her mum requested some bunny figurine as her birthday was celebrated at a farm. I made rachel's figurine in white dress with pink ribbon with sleeping grey cat and white bunny standing next to her. I made the figurine days before and glued them onto the decorated cake.

The class was so intensive. We had to ganache, covered the cake in fondant, made the decorations and put them together. It was a great pressure for me as a beginner to work with that speed and tight time limit. But the teacher (Fran) and her assistant (Effie) were great, they are so professional. Thanks girls.


Great experience...Happy Birthday Rachel...hope you like the cake.


Pineapple cookies

Chinese new year in Melbourne always been very flat and hardly any celebration. I remember in my childhood, weeks before the Chinese new year we were so busy baking and making cookies. Pineapple cookies is one of my favourite Chinese new year food. Now pineapple is in season, so I planned to make some pineapple cookies. I found my mum recipe in my recipe book that I've never tried before. Days before I started making the cookies, I prepared the pineapple jam. You can buy some pineapple jam from supermarket but I prefer making them.

Pineapple Jam

1 baby pineapple grated to the texture that you like (I prefer them quite chunky)
4-5 tbsp sugar (depend on the sweetness of the pineapple)

Put the grated pineapple and sugar in a pot, use low heat to cook the pineapple mix. Keep cooking and stirring until the pineapple mix is dry but becareful not to burn it. Let it cool and put in air tight container and store it in the fridge until ready to use them.



Pineapple cookies

4 egg yolks

200 gr butter

25 gr caster sugar

250 gr flour

2 tbsp milk powder

1. Pre-heat oven to 160C (140C fan force). Lined cookies tin with some baking paper.

2. Roll the pineapple jam into small balls. Set it aside.

3. Beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Slowly add eggs, flour and milk powder mix well. Press until smooth.

4. Roll the dough into balls bigger than the jam balls. Make hole in the middle with chopstick or you finger then fill with the jam balls. In this step you can shape the cookies into any shape that you like.

5. Put the cookies into the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden yellow. Once cook, cool on rack.

The cookies taste yummy and melt in mouth but don't look good especially if you are using mould. It can really hold the shape together. Good try though.

Mini Pie

Sam made his lunch order...he said he wanted some meat pie for lunch so I made him some simple mini pies.

Mini pie

2 cups plain flour

1 tbsp icing sugar

150 gr butter

2-3 tablespoons iced water

egg yolk for brushing

1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Brush two 12 cup shallow patty tins lightly with melted butter.

2. Place flour, sugar and butter in a food processor. process until the mixture is fine and crumbly. Add almost all the water and process until the mixture comes together. Turn onto a lightly floured surface, press together until smooth. Roll out two thirds of the pastry and use a biscuit cutter to cut out 24 circles. Fit the circles into prepared tins.

3. Divide the meat filling between pastry cases. Roll out the remaining pastry, cut out 12 circles with the same cutter. Press edges to seal. Brush with egg yolk. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden. Leave in the tins for 5 minutes and then carefully lift out with a knife and allow to cool on wire racks.

for the filling you can use any meat and vegetables that you like. I used some pork and chicken mince. Chopped onion, garlic and carrot. Fry all the ingredient add some soy sauce and wocestershire sauce to taste. Once you get the taste you like add 2 tablespoon of flour, mix well. The filling now will be thick, let it cool.

Simple fried noodle

I haven't been posting for the last 2 weeks...just too busy not sure what I've been busy with...just busy :-) Everyday, all I do just thinking what lunch should I prepare for Sam tommorrow. When I ran out of idea I just prepared him ham and cheese sandwich...but he only took a bite and that's it for the whole day. I was so worried when he didn't eat his lunch...that's mum...worry...worry...and WORRY...
Last week, I made him fried noodle and wonton...suprisingly he finished them all...hohoho...I'm so happy


I use instant noodle...just boil the noodle as per instruction and drain. Thinly cut 1 spring onion and some cabbage (cut into thin strips). With some oil fry some shallot, spring onion and cabbage until wilted. Stir in the noodle, add little bit of soy sauce and sweet soy sauce to taste.

And it's done. With the wonton, I prepared some pork mince mixed with some onion and garlic then add somesoy sauce, sesame oil and some salt. Mixed them well. Put a spoonful of mince mix onto a wonton skin. Wrap well and ready to fry. Heat some oil and fry the wonton. Keep frying on 1 side until golden brown then fry the other side.

Easy and yummy...prepare all the ingredients and the wonton the night before so it won't be too rush in the morning.

Monday, February 1, 2010

Sam's Bento Box

Second week of school, this week Sam starts early and finishes late...now the real school life has started. This morning Sam kept asking me 'why do I have to go to school everyday, mum?' and I answered because you'll learn new thing...he's not quite convinced. Until he saw I took out some spicy anchovy from the pantry then he changed his question...'can I please have the anchovy for my lunch, mum?' So today no baking but I still used some baking tool actually the cookies cutter. Cookies cutter always come in handy in preparing kids meal especially the cutter with fancy shapes.

I cut a roasted seaweed sheet into 3 thin stripes and stuffed medium size heart cutter with some chicken rice ( left over from dinner :-) ). Wrap the seaweed stripes around the heart shape rice ball, the seaweed sticks perfectly onto the rice. Sprinkle some japanese rice seasoning onto the heart rice rolls.

For the salad, you can use any vegetables that you like. With my salad, I used cucumber, boiled carrot & cauliflower and my son favourite fruit lychee (deseeded). Finished with japanese mayonaise and sprinkle some japanese rice seasoning.

Anchovy (ikan bilis, my son calls it) is high in calcium and protein so I added some for appetizer. Not to much as it's very high in sodium as well.

Hope you enjoy this bento box as much as my Sam... :-)