Jumping on the bandwagon!!

For the past few months I have seen a common flavour of cupcakes that seem to pop up everywhere.

Red Velvet.

They are the classically American cake whose characteristic red tint comes from a chemical reaction between vinegar and pure dutch cocoa powder. These days however, the red colour of the cake is achieved through food dye... not that it really matters, the effect is just stunning.

The first time I had Red Velvet cupcakes it was done by my dear friend, Meibo. The cake was dense and moist with the rich flavours of dark chocolate and raspberries with an added touch of rosewater cream cheese frosting for a touch of delicateness. It was absolutely beautiful, but she has since gone back to Hong Kong along with my Red Velvet fix.

It's only until recently did I dare try to explore the realms of Red Velvet. After a hard week of working it only took my sister's persistence and babysitting a couple of cutiepies for me to be convinced to do some fun loving baking session!

Dark Chocolate and Raspberry Red Velvet Cupcakes 

with a Classic Cream Cheese Frosting

My Japanese baby

Everytime I go to Asian bakeries I come across a specific spongey cheesecake that I just couldn't get my mind off. I couldn't really decide for myself if it was just a special sponge cake or if it even has cheese on it. It is something trully amazing. So as I was chatting to Brittonie about cakes and pastries as per usual one lunch break, she mentioned the Japanese cheesecake!

Alas! I know what it was exactly .. it was a spongey cheesecake! Finally a confirmation. It didn't take long until I googled the recipe and was lucky enough to have the first recipe to pop up actually work! It's almost like a cross between a soufflé and a sponge. It's something you just have to make at least once in your life or maybe a million times, It's a sure winner!

So I present to you, my beautiful Japanese baby. Silky, soft and moist Hokkaido Cheesecake with a hint of lemon flavour.

Hokkaido Cheesecake with Fresh berries and topped with snow sugar

Sillooooooooooooooo's 21st ...

Silloo or Charlie as we know her is one of my dearest Pastry girls from Stage Two. She's different and at hind sight you'd think she's a little crazy. But that is something that you would love about her, she is creative, she is loud, she is fun, she is beautiful, she is talented and she is an incredibly colourful character - both literally and metaphorically.

The girls were happy to have been invited to the Carnival Buffet we held with Megan in Stage 3. The cake that stood out the most for her was the Baileys Flan Cake. The cake was a cloudy and moist Tia Maria Sponge base with Baileys cream flan on top lavished with silky crème chantilly and fresh fruits, it was a perfect epitome of "heaven in a cake". Something about it just stuck to Charlie and was somewhat of an unforgettable experience. So as she tried it, had it and loved it - she asked for it to be her birthday cake for her 21st this year. She also asked for a sugar daddy Afro man made out of fondant for her birthday, so teaming up with Kimmy who made the sculpture... we gave Charlie the biggest surprise of her life!

Happy 21st Birthday Sillllllloooooooooooooooooooooo !!!!

Tarts...

It's difficult to find a sweet paste pastry that actually resembles those of a French patisserie. Lucky for me, I managed to find one that works like a dream. Perfectly crumbly and buttery with a hint of sweetness and saltiness to carry any sweet filling you can possibly want.

Tried and tested for baked treats or just a a ganache filling .. it is just amazing.

The first tart is inspired by the gorgeous raspberry and dark chocolate tart by The Westin Hotel.

Crushed raspberry based with dark chocolate ganache 

and topped with fresh raspberries

The following tart is tried and tested on a French style baked Lemon and Lime Tart.

Baked Lemon and Lime Curd Tart topped with crushed pistachios

and  caramelised julienned lime and lemon rind 

The following tart is inspired by the beautiful Anne who managed to give me a boxful of fresh figs organically grown in their garden! 

Fig and Almond Tart infused with Tia Maria liqueur 

and baked with brown sugar

The Chocolate Mudcake

“All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt.”

― Charles M. Schulz


Now I know I have covered mudcakes before but let's look at it as me levelling up and taking this mudcake into new heights. Since the post in 2010 Trial & Error, I think I may have managed to actually perfect the mudcake.

This cake is moist and although quite rich it has the perfect balance of sponginess of a cake and a density of a mudcake that makes it quite easy to devour. The chocolate is bittersweet, further enhanced by the aroma of coffee and Tia Maria with a nice glossy dark chocolate ganache finish and swirled with couverture white chocolate to create a sweeter component. Perfect with a quenelle of cream, poured with crème anglais or eaten with vanilla ice cream.. it's something that you would not regret eating.

Chef Gert quoted that "he has never eaten a better mudcake than this"... and for me that has got to be the best compliment to be ever given to a cake.

As an aspiring student, you always try to find ways to improve cakes or discover different flavours for a dessert. When I came across hazelnut praline crunch bites at work, I couldn't help but grab a bottle and test it out.

With extra mudcake batter in hand, extra espresso pastry cream and hazelnut praline in hand, this little beauty was conceived...

Espresso creme mudcake cupcake

Dark chocolate mud cake with espresso creme patissier topped with whipped ganache and hazelnut praline crunch.

Little Miss Teapot ..

This was one of the most challenging cakes to date.. A teapot cake.

The body had to be carved entirely out of 2 x 8" square pans to get the shape, the flowers, teapot handle and spout had to be made from scratch. I cannot deny that it has been fun to make though. It took me back to the artist in me, playing with colour and capturing the realism of a flower and the actual construction of a teapot cake.

Elly ♥ Stephen

Elly is a dear friend of mine from work. Days leading up to her boyfriend's birthday, Elly asked me if I can help her with Stephen's cake - specifically a Panda cake. So a little workshop we did over at her place and this is what we came up with ...