Cake Classes

I completed my second cake class a few weeks ago. (Actually, I didn't make it to the last class because I came down with a respiratory infection.) I took the first class at a specialty cake supply store but decided that $80 was a bit too much for a cake decorating class. The second course, the fondant and gum paste course, was $20 at Hobby Lobby.

A few cakes from my the first course: Decorating Basics.

This one was the cake we had to bake for the second class. We were supposed to learn about torting, icing and some basic piping. The icing we used was a special recipe that the instructor came up with. She called it Helen's "buttercream" for fondant look cakes. The icing tastes like Crisco and powdered sugar but does create a very smooth icing that mimics the smooth look of fondant. I'm not posting pictures of the cupcakes for the third class. We learned shaggy mums and were supposed to decorate the cupcakes with them. I thought they looked like cousin It.

This was the final cake. I made the roses the weekend before class using royal icing. I made over 50 roses that weekend for practice. When I showed up to class, the instructor watched me make my roses and said I did them the wrong way. I was supposed to go counter-clockwise instead of clockwise. Well...after 50+ roses done the wrong way, my brain cannot be re-trained to do them the correct way. (This cake sat on my counter for about five days before I took the picture. The icing does not rot or melt. Gross!)

The shell border that we learned in class.

Cake for the Fondant & Gum Paste Course:

And this cake was for my fondant and gum paste course. We only had to bake one cake for the last class. Weeks 1 through 3 were all about learning to make the various gum paste flowers and designs. I made the cake, covered it with fondant and then stuck all the flowers in place. My plan was to give it the finishing touches in class. I got sick so I sent the cake to class with my friend. She finished it with a rope border and covered up the fondant cracks with cut outs using the calyx cutter. (She took the two photos below and posted them of facebook. I never actually got to see the cake because it was served to my coworkers.)

It took about two weeks to complete all the flowers. I didn't work on them each night. (I had to take a break when I sliced my thumb with my Asian vegetable peeler.) I spent about an hour or two each night making the flowers. I made a total of 25 mums and averaged about 5 mums per night. Some nights were spent making and coloring the gum paste and fondant.

It took a lot of tools. I took over the kitchen table. I covered it with a vinyl tablecloth and had tools everywhere.

Some Recipes:

Buttercream for Fondant Look Cakes
2 pounds powdered sugar
4 Tablespoons meringue powder
1 teaspoon popcorn salt
1 cup Crisco shortening
1/3 to ½ cup water (lukewarm)
2 teaspoons vanilla or flavoring of your choice

Combine powdered sugar, meringue powder and salt together. Add remaining ingredients and mix at low to medium speed until smooth. Enjoy!

Royal Icing for Piping
(Stiff consistency)
yield: 3 cups

3 level tablespoons Meringue Powder
1 lb. icing sugar
5 tablespoons lukewarm water

Make sure all utensils are grease free (containers to store the icing, too!)

Place icing sugar and Meringue Powder in a bowl. Stir or mix at low speed until blended. Add water and mix 7 to 10 minutes at low-medium speed until icing loses its sheen. To prevent drying, be sure to cover the bowl with a damp cloth while working with icing.

Store in an airtight grease-free container (stainless steel bowls with airtight lid are ideal) for up to 2 weeks (room temperature). To reuse, beat on low to restore original texture.

Classic Rolled Fondant
yield: 2 lb.
1 tablespoon unflavored gelatin
1/4 cup cold water* * or, 3 tablespoons cold water, and
1/2 cup Glucose* * 1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 tablespoon Glycerin
2 tablespoons solid vegetable shortening
2 lbs. Icing sugar
2 to 3 drops liquid food colour and flavoring, as desired

• Combine gelatin and cold water; let stand until thick.
• Place gelatin mixture in top of double boiler and heat until dissolved.
• Add glucose and glycerin, mix well.
• Stir in shortening and just before completely melted, remove from heat, add flavoring and colour.
• Mixture should cool until lukewarm.
• Next, place 1 lb. Icing sugar in a bowl and make a well.
• Pour the lukewarm gelatin mixture into the well and stir with a wooden spoon, mixing in sugar and adding more, a little at a time, until stickiness disappears.
• Knead in remaining sugar.
• Knead until the fondant is smooth, pliable and does not stick to hands.
• If fondant is too soft, add more sugar; if too stiff, add water (a drop at a time).
• Use fondant immediately, or follow the direction for storing rolled fondant.

Storing Rolled Fondant:
Rolled Fondant dries out very quickly, so keep it covered and store properly and promptly.
If stored properly (and promptly), it will keep up to 1 month R room temperature.

1. Roll it into smooth ball, disc, or log shape.
2. Coat it with solid white vegetable shortening.
3. Wrap with plastic food storage wrap (microwaveable), twice.
4. Wrap with aluminium foil.
5. If freezing, put it in a resealable plastic food storage bag or airtight container.

Gum Paste
This recipe is the one on the back of the Wilton can of Gum-Tex (with minor modifications to make life easier). The texture of is really nice. I like to mix the gum paste with equal parts fondant when making flowers or bows.

1 tablespoon Wilton Gum-Tex
4 cups (1 pound) sifted powdered sugar
1 heaping tablesspoon Glucose or light corn syrup
4 tablespoons warm water

In a large bowl, combine Gum-Tex with 3 cups of powdered sugar. Make a well in the center and set aside. Combine water and glucose in a glass measuring cup. Heat in microwave on high for about 30 seconds. until mixture is clear. Pour into well of sugar and mix until well blended. Slowly knead in the last cup of powdered sugar.

Wrap with plastic wrap and place in airtight container. Allow gum paste to rest at least 8 hours. Keep well wrapped. Knead in shortening to keep gum paste soft and pliable.

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Barefoot Contessa's Chocolate Cupcakes (Altitude Adjusted) with Swiss Meringue Buttercream

I haven't been posting much lately. September has been a crazy month. I've been out of town three times in the last month. I hate airports =(

The recipe below is the result of about two and a half months of experimenting. I've been tinkering with this since July. The last batch I made was on September 18. I'm finally satisfied with the results. I'll probably try it as a cake this coming weekend and use it for my final project for my final cake decorating class. (Don't tell the instructor that I'm not using her doctored cake mix recipe.)

It is my favorite cupcake recipe at the moment. Cake recipes with buttermilk always give me the most trouble but I was able to make it work. The texture is not quite as pudding-like as the original recipe but it makes beautiful slightly domed cupcakes. Top it with swiss meringue buttercream and it is cupcake heaven.

Barefoot Contessa Chocolate Cupcake (Adjusted for Altitude)

Ingredients:
2 ½ cups minus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 ¾ cups sugar
¾ cups dutch cocoa powder (Valrhona, Guittard Cocoa Rouge or Droste)
2 teaspoons baking soda
scant teaspoon baking powder
scant teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk, shaken
½ cup vegetable oil
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
¾ cup freshly brewed hot coffee

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake tins with paper liners. Fill each well halfway with batter. Makes approximately 36 cupcakes.

Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined. In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. With mixer still on low, add the coffee and stir just to combine, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 20 to 30 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean.


Swiss Meringue Buttercream for Cupcakes

Makes about 9 cups, enough for about 28 cupcakes (The recipe says 28 cupcakes but I was able to frost all 36 cupcakes with extra. Maybe I'm a little stingy with my frosting.)

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups sugar
• 10 large egg whites
• 4 cups (8 sticks or 2 pounds) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions:

Place sugar and egg whites in the heat-proof bowl of an electric mixer. Set bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, and whisk until sugar has dissolved and egg whites are hot to the touch, about 3 minutes. Test by rubbing the mixture between your fingers; it should feel completely smooth.

Transfer bowl to mixer stand. Using the whisk attachment, beat on high speed until mixture has cooled completely and formed stiff and glossy peaks, about 10 minutes.

Add the butter, one piece at a time, and beat until incorporated after each addition. Don't worry if the buttercream appears curdled after all the butter has been added; it will become smooth again with continued beating. Add vanilla, and beat just until combined.

Switch to the paddle attachment, and beat on the lowest speed to eliminate any air pockets, about 5 minutes. If using buttercream within several hours, cover bowl with plastic wrap, and set aside at room temperature in a cool environment. Or transfer to an airtight container, and store in the refrigerator, up to 3 days. Before using, bring buttercream to room temperature, and beat on the lowest speed with the paddle attachment until smooth, about 5 minutes.

Original recipe - creates a moist, pudding-like cake with sunken centers.

Adjusted recipe but too much flour - It has great flavor and the texture was not bad but not as moist as the original recipe. The crackled tops indicate too much flour.

Perfected recipe - This is the recipe posted. The crowns are perfect and the cake is moist.

Frosting the Cupcakes - I experimented with two different tips. The huge 16" bag on the left holds a ton of frosting. I am also using a 12" disposal bag. I like to use cups to hold my bags when I fill them. These Rockies souveneir cups are perfect.

Tips: Wilton 1M (Open Star (it's bent so it looks more like a closed star)), Wilton 2D (Drop Flower), and Ateco 847 (Closed Star). For the cupcakes, I used the Wilton 2D and the Ateco 847.

This was frosted with an Ateco 847. The large closed star tip produced large soft serve swirls.

My favorite tip for frosting cupcakes is the Wilton 2D. It produces nice ruffled swirls.

Ingredient/Equipment Notes:

Cocoa: I like the darker dutch processed cocoa for this cupcake. I tried the recipe with Valrhona, Guittard Cocoa Rouge, and Droste. I think they all worked really well. Use your favorite premium dutch cocoa.

Buttermilk: I tried both reduced fat and full fat cultured buttermilk and it did not make a difference.

Eggs: This is a Barefoot Contessa recipe. She likes to bake using extra large instead of the typical large egg. I'm not sure when she made the switch but I read her notes in one of her cookbooks.

Coffee: I brew Lion Coffee's Toasted Coconut coffee but I'm sure any brand will do. I just happen to drink Lion brand at home.

Cupcake pans: Buy the heaviest pans you can afford. I usually use heavy aluminum for my cakes but since I line my cupcake pans, I bought the cheaper heavy nonstick at Sur la Table.

Cupcake liners: I like cute cupcake liners and have a whole collection of them but most of the time (and especially for dark cupcakes), I reach for the plain unbleached grease-proof liners.

Half or 2/3 full? I used to fill my cupcake tins 2/3 full but found that I get much better results filling them half full.

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Spring Fling Cake from The Market in Larimer Square

This is a recipe for the Spring Fling cake sold at The Market at Larimer Square.  It is a very unusual zucchini-based cake frosted with a whipped cream and cream cheese icing and topped with an abundance of fresh fruit.  The first time I had the cake was for a celebration at work.  I didn’t realize the cake cost $150 for the full sheet.  This recipe is for the 10 inch round that retails for $50.  When I lived in Lodo, I frequently walked over to The Market to buy a slice.  A slice cost just under $7.  I think it’s worth every penny.

The cake itself is not hard to make.  It just requires gathering many ingredients together.  The Market usually tops their cake with strawberries, mango, kiwi, black grapes and mandarin oranges. I omitted the blueberries listed in the recipe because I don’t ever recall having blueberries on my cake.  I consulted the picture on The Market's website and I didn't spot a single blueberry.  I also subbed blackberries for the black grapes because I was feeling it.

The recipe below was published by the Rocky Mountain News.   It calls for a 10 inch round cake pan.  I didn’t have a 10 inch round so I used a 10 inch scalloped pan instead.  I’ve also successfully used this recipe for cupcakes by filling the pan about three quarters full.

EDIT: December 2017 

I've been having trouble baking this cake since I moved from Denver to San Diego.  Initially, I blamed it on the oven but other cakes and breads come out fine. I then moved from baking it in my 10 inch Fat Daddios aluminum cake pan to two 8 inch Fat Daddios aluminum pan and finally to two 9 inch Calphalon nonstick pans.  Nothing made a difference.  The cake tasted fine but the texture was gummy and almost uncooked. 

I read and reread the recipe, trying to figure it out why the cake failed.  From the comments below, it looks like others ran into the same problem. It is not a particularly fragile cake so it's shouldn't be so finicky. Then it clicked! The amount of leavening for 3 1/4 cups of flour seems really low. The paltry amount of leavening worked fine at 5,280 feet above sea level but was not enough for sea level.  I tested it out by making half the recipe and doubling the baking powder and soda and it worked! I probably need to tinker with the recipe a bit more but for now, it works.

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Coconut Pineapple Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

This is the only way I make my carrot cake.  To me carrot cake should be fully-loaded with raisins, pineapple, coconut, nuts, and carrots. 


Coconut Pineapple Carrot Cake

1 cup raisins, plumped by soaking in hot water (I usually use golden raisins but I didn't have enough golden raisins so a mix of golden and dark raisins went into the cake.)
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon allspice
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 ¼ canola oil
2 ½ cups coarsely grated carrots
1 8 ounce can pineapple, drained and chopped
1 cup sweetened coconut flakes
1 cup walnuts, chopped
½ cup toasted coconut flakes for decorating (optional)

1.    Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line two 9” round cake pans.
2.    Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice in a medium bowl.  Set aside.
3.    Beat eggs until foamy, continue to beat while adding vanilla and sugar.  When mixture is thick, add oil.  Mix well.
4.    Add flour mixture and mix just until moistened.
5.    Fold in raisins, carrots, pineapple, coconut and walnuts.
6.    Divide batter between pans and bake about 50 minutes or until wooden skewer inserted in center comes out clean.
7.    Cool completely and level cake before frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting:
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, room temp
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
3/4 pound powdered sugar
8 ounces (1 brick) cream cheese, cold

In the bowl of an electric mixture, cream together butter vanila and almond extract. Add powdered sugar and continue creaming until mixed. Add cream cheese and mix until light and fluffy.

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High Altitude Red Velvet (and Aqua Velvet) Cupcakes

Red velvet are the most problematic cakes for me. I can't get them just right at this altitude. I think it's a combination of leavening issues, flour structure issues, and weird chemical reactions of the acidic ingredients (vinegar, buttermilk and even natural cocoa powder) with the baking soda. I've been experimenting with a high altitude red velvet cupcake recipe and although I am not completely satisfied, it works (sort of) and tastes delicious. The cupcakes need additional experimenting but the cream cheese frosting is perfect.

I made a batch using my adjusted recipe from last year and then I made a batch subbing all purpose flour for cake flour. I had to remind myself why I wanted to make cake flour work at high altitude. The crumb is much better. The recipe below will still result in subtly sunken middles, but the trade off in texture is worth it. I'll experiment with mixing cake and all purpose flours next time. I cannot look at another red (or aqua) velvet cupcake at the moment.

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Black & White Cookie Project Part I

I’m working on perfecting the famous Black and White cookie. The first recipe I'm trying out is for the NYC version. This is not the upstate new York version. The upstate New York version is called the half moon (sometimes also called black and white) and I will blog about it at a later time. They are two distinctly different versions and each have their own dedicated fans. I’ve had both versions and since I am not from New York, I cannot say I have any loyalty to either version. I like them both.

I'm starting off with a recipe from Glaser’s Bake Shop. The recipe was published in the May 13, 1998 issue of the New York Times. Glaser's is a small family-own bakery and the recipe has been passed down for generations. I followed Glaser's recipe for the cookie base but I adapted the icing from Gourmet because my coworker wanted me to troubleshoot the Gourmet magazine recipe she has been using. She wanted me to help her “fix” the weird flavor. She said the lemon flavor was off and the icing tasted chalky. I found many of the icing recipes on the internet very similar to each other. They consisted of powdered sugar, water and light corn syrup. Variations included lemon juice and/or vanilla. Some recipes used cocoa powder and others used baking chocolate.

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Vietnamese Honeycomb Cake (Banh Bo Nuong)

I had a craving for a pandan dessert so I decided to make Vietnamese Honeycomb Cake. My two aunts have both mastered this cake and I think they secretly have honeycomb cake competitions.

This cake is very good but different. It is not as sweet as many western desserts and the texture is a bit chewy. The coconut and the pandan is just heaven. I think the two flavors were made for each other. The cake is also gluten-free. I have a coworker who is on a gluten-free diet. I gave her a piece because she is always searching for baked goods made without gluten. (Unfortunately, I made the cake during Passover and it is leavened. She decided to make a one time exception.)

I prefer eating the cake when fresh out of the oven, when the browned parts are still crispy, but it is still pretty good the next day. Nuke it in the microwave for about 10 seconds.

Vietnamese Pandan Honeycomb Cake

Ingredients:
7 ounces coconut cream (I used Savoy brand. I tend to use Savoy for desserts and Chaokoh or Mae Ploy for curries)
1 cup granulated sugar
pinch of salt
pandan extract (The amount varies depending on the brand you use and the viscosity and potency of the extract.)
8 ounces tapioca starch
5 large eggs
1 package (2 1/2 teaspoons or 11 grams) single-acting baking powder (I used Alsa brand and it comes prepackaged)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix coconut cream, sugar and salt in a microwave safe container. (I really like my glass measuring cups for this.) Microwave about 30 seconds to a minute. Stir to dissolve sugar. Add the pandan extract and mix well.
3. With a wooden spoon, slowly and gently stir together tapioca, eggs and baking powder. (I read that over mixing interferes with the development of the desired honeycomb tunneling.)
4. Put a 9x9 square baking pan in the oven.
5. Add the coconut-sugar mixture to the egg-tapioca mixture and gently fold everything togther.
6. Take the baking pan out of the oven and spray with cooking spray. Spread the mixture in the pan and bake in oven about 30 minutes. (Do not open the oven door.)

Ingredient Note: The recipe calls for single-acting baking powder. Most baking powders sold in the grocery stores are double-acting. What's the difference? Single-acting works once. It starts producing carbon dioxide when it gets wet. Double-acting works twice. It starts producing carbon dioxide once when it gets wet and second when it is heated. You want single-acting for this recipe. Alsa is a French brand (now made by the Unilever Group) and is sometimes called "levure alsacienne." I haven't tried it with double-acting because I'm too afraid to waste ingredients so I do not know if you can sub double-acting for the single-acting. My aunt uses Alsa brand single-acting baking powder so I'm sticking with it. I think there are recipes out there for making your own sinlge-acting baking powder. It is basically baking soda and cream of tartar (sometimes cornstarch is used to help keep the powder dry). I don't think it is worth it to make your own since cream of tartar on its own is pretty pricey. I use it to stabilize my egg whites.

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Chinese Birthday Cake Take Four (or Five)

I've been a little lazy with posting again. I'm still cooking. (I just downloaded tons of pictures off the camera.) I've just been a little busy with family (preparing for their arrival, entertaining them and then recovering from entertaining).

I've been so out of it that I baked a cake (and made 75 egg rolls and 3 dozen zucchini muffins) to take to a birthday party and when I got to the party, I discovered that the party is next Saturday. Maybe next time I need to learn to read the date correctly on the invitation.

By special request, I made this birthday cake for the cutest 2 year old girl. (I will be making another one next week.) It will be three straight weeks of Chinese birthday cake baking. I made it last week for a friend's 30th birthday party. (We were out until 4:00 AM.)

The cake is the same recipe as the other cake but doubled to make a half sheet cake. Did I mention that I LOVE this cake? It is my favorite cake in the whole wide world. Growing up in California, we always had Chinese cake at every birthday.


Chinese Sponge Cake (aka Chinese Birthday Cake)
(Gai Don Go)

18 eggs, separated
2 cups cake flour, sifted
1 cup all purpose flour, sifted
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups sugar
1 cup water
½ cup oil
2 teaspoons vanilla

For decorating:
Chantilly cream
2 pounds strawberries, sliced
3 bananas, sliced
2 cups slivered almonds, toasted

Chantilly cream:
1 quart heavy whipping cream
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch

1. Beat egg yolks until thick, add sifted flour, sugar, baking powder, water, oil and vanilla and beat until creamy. Set aside.
2. Beat egg whites until foamy, add cream of tartar and beat until stiff peaks are formed.
3. Fold a third of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture. Gently fold the rest of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture until incorporated.
4. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven. Divide batter between two quarter sheet cake pans. Bake for about 20-25 minutes.
5. When cool, slice cake two make two layers.
6. For chantilly cream: whip heavy whipping cream with vanilla, sugar and cornstarch.

Spread whipped cream on the bottom layer. Arrange strawberries and bananas on top of the whipped cream.

Spread a thin layer on top of the fruit filling. (I also sprinkled with some almonds because I like the taste of the spongy cake, sweet strawberries, creamy whipped cream and the toasty almonds. Whenever we have Chinese cake, I always ask for the edge piece because the middle slices never had any almonds. Now every slice comes with almonds.)
This is the coolest tool ever. It is an f.dick 9" spatula. I have no patience for decorating cakes but this tool makes the task easier.

Arrange the second layer on top of the bottom layer.

Spread with whipped cream.

Decorate sides with toasted slivered almonds and top with fresh fruit.
Okay the middle looked empty so I decided to place three whole strawberries there.

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Chinese Birthday Cake Take Three

I've been making this a lot. It is my favorite cake and the bf actually enjoys it. I'm still trying different variations. This time I baked it in a tube pan. It is the same recipe as Chinese Cake Take Two. This time I didn't forget the vanilla. I think I actually prefer it without the vanilla. It tastes more authentic without it. The texture was lighter this time because I inverted the cake while I let it cool.

I sliced it into two layers and layered with fresh whipped cream and sliced strawberries.

Chinese Sponge Cake (aka Chinese Birthday Cake)
(Gai Don Go)
9 eggs, separated
1 cup cake flour, sifted
½ cup all purpose flour, sifted
½ tsp. cream of tartar
½ tsp. baking powder
1 c. sugar
½ c. water
¼ c. oil
1 tsp. vanilla

1. Beat egg yolks until thick, add sifted flour, sugar, baking powder, water, oil and vanilla and beat until creamy. Set aside.
2. Beat egg whites until foamy, add cream of tartar and beat until stiff peaks are formed.
3. Fold a third of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture. Gently fold the rest of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture until incorporated.
4. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven. If using a 9x13 pan, bake for about 20-25 minutes. If using tube pan, bake 35-40 minutes and invert the pan while cooling.
5. When cool, top or layer with fresh whipped cream and sliced strawberries.

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Chinese Birthday Cake Take Two

Although I was satisfied with the génoise cake that I used as the base for my Chinese birthday cake, it was not exactly the cake that I was looking for. The génoise with the Chantilly cream and fresh strawberries was quite delicious but I was still on the search for the sponge-y cake found at Chinese bakeries.

When I was in Vegas last weekend, we stopped by the bakery next to the Pho restaurant. We bought quite a few snacks including a slice of this wonderful cake. I’ve been searching for this elusive recipe but I only found web pages with people requesting the recipe. Lucy Zhang blogged about this cake but the picture on her page shows a cake with a coarser crumb.

I decided to give another recipe a try in hopes of finding an even better Chinese birthday cake. I found this recipe on a message board. I decided to sub a little AP flour for some of the cake flour because I don’t completely trust cake flour to act properly at high altitude. If you’re at sea level you should be fine with using all cake flour.

I even forgot to add the vanilla and it came out delicious. The recipe is for a tube pan or a 9x13 pan. Since I wanted two cakes because I wanted one for home and one to take over to a friend’s house, I baked them in two 9-inch pans. The finished cakes were not tall enough for me to slice and layer so I simply topped with whipped cream and sliced strawberries. I will make a 9x13 version or adjust the recipe for two 9-inch pans this weekend.

Chinese Sponge Cake (aka Chinese Birthday Cake)
(Gai Don Go)
9 eggs, separated
1 cup cake flour, sifted
½ cup all purpose flour, sifted
½ tsp. cream of tartar
½ tsp. baking powder
1 c. sugar
½ c. water
¼ c. oil
1 tsp. vanilla

1. Beat egg yolks until thick, add sifted flour, sugar, baking powder, water, oil and vanilla and beat until creamy. Set aside.
2. Beat egg whites until foamy, add cream of tartar and beat until stiff peaks are formed.
3. Fold a third of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture. Gently fold the rest of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture until incorporated.
4. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven. If using a 9x13 pan, bake for about 20-25 minutes. If using tube pan, bake 35-40 minutes and invert the pan while cooling.
5. When cool, top or layer with fresh whipped cream and sliced strawberries.

Cake in my cupcake carrier and ready for transporting:

This is not a good picture of the cake but it shows the color and texture of the cake. This is a slice from the cake that I kept for myself. I sprinkled the almonds on top instead of on the side.

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Pandan Chiffon Cake

I’m on a foam cake kick. Maybe I’ll bake my way through the different types.

I noticed that I’ve never posted any recipes using pandan (pandanus or screw pine leaves). Pandan is a popular flavor in many Asian recipes. I buy a little bottle of the thick-ish extract to use to flavor agar-agar and coconut jigglies. My aunt likes to make pandan cakes in various forms. Her steamed pandan cakes are delicious and her baked rice flour pandan cake is to die for. She uses the little envelopes of baking powder sold at Asian grocery stores. She swears it is different from the stuff in the regular grocery stores. I have only seen pandan leaves once in my life. I was still very young and my mom made pandan flavored chendol noodles. My mom, despite her awkwardness in the kitchen, can make some delicious Asian desserts. It was her specialty.

I didn’t have a tube pan and since I’ve been reading about sponge cakes, which lead me to reading about chiffon cakes, I was compelled to go buy a tube pan just for making this cake. I have a bundt pan but somehow I didn’t think it would work. I even saw a woman jerry-rig a regular springform pan with a small tin can in the middle. I was looking for a non non-stick pan but the closest I was able to find was one of those lighter non-stick pans. I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. The alternative was to slowly scrape away the non-stick finish off the pan. Oh and get one with removable bottom or you’ll spend an eternity trying to get the cake out of the pan. The batter will stick even to the non-stick pan.

I took care to clean all my bowls and tools. I hid all the plastic bowls. One thing I learned from Home Ec class in the 8th grade was that plastic was evil when it came to making meringues. The reason is because no matter how hard you scrub, you can never remove the fat adhered to plastic. We often beat our egg whites in copper bowls in order to stabilize the whites. I don’t happen to own any copper bowls. I would love a copper kitchen but most copper options (such as the Williams-Sonoma exclusive copper KitchenAid mixer) cost more than the stainless or white options. In lieu of the copper bowls, we use cream of tartar to help stabilize the whites. Ever put cream of tartar on your tongue? Don’t try it. It is so acidic that it will make you really pucker up. The cream of tartar stabilizes the whites and keeps the liquid from leaching out. Without the cream of tartar, soon after whipping, you will see a pool of water form at the bottom of your bowl. No fun.

In order to ensure a successful chiffon cake, you should use slightly more egg whites to yolks. Hmm...I hate wasting eggs so I have this handy dried egg white powder (aka meringue powder) just for moments like these. What am I supposed to do with 2 extra egg yolks? (The extra whites from the last time I made creme brulee are still in the freezer. Perhaps one day it will become an omelet.) I use the powdered egg whites when I need a little more whites or when I make royal icing.
Pandan Chiffon Cake

Ingredients:
150 grams unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
200 ml coconut milk (half a small can of Chaokoh)
8 egg yolks
10 egg whites or 8 egg whites and 4 teaspoons egg white powder + ¼ cup water
140 grams baker’s sugar
¼ cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 teaspoons pandan extract

Mise en Place:
1. Clean and dry your mixer bowl. You want to make sure you remove all remnants of fat from the bowl.
2. Measure flour and baking powder and sift together. Set aside.
3. Separate egg yolks from whites. Put the egg yolks into a large mixing bowl but not your mixer bowl (unless you have an extra mixer bowl.) Hold egg whites in a glass or metal bowl but not in a plastic bowl. Remember fat is the enemy when you are trying to beat egg whites to stiff peaks. Reconstitute powdered egg white if using.
4. Measure out 60 grams of baker’s sugar and mix with cream of tartar and salt. Set aside.
5. Measure out the rest of the ingredients.

Directions:

1. Preheat over to 350 degrees.

2. Add 140 grams of baker’s sugar to the egg yolks and using a wire whisk or hand mixer, beat until thick and creamy. Add coconut milk, oil, vanilla extract and pandan paste to egg yolk mixture. Continue to mix until thick and frothy.

3. In your mixer bowl, add egg whites and your 60 grams of sugar, cream of tartar, and salt mixture. Beat on medium speed (approximately speed 4) until soft peaks are reached. Switch mixer to medium-high (approximately speed 8) until stiff peaks are reached.

How can you tell when you have peaks? If you have a tilt-head mixer you can simply tilt the mixer back and check the whisk. If you are using a hand mixer, you can lift the mixer out of the bowl, hold it upside down and check the beaters. I have a bowl-lift mixer so I use intuition. When it appears right, I unplug the mixer, lower the bowl, remove the whisk attachment, then take a dollop of the whites, invert the whisk to double-check.

4. Fold about a quarter of the egg whites into the batter and then gently fold the rest of the whites into the batter. Be gentle so that you do not deflate the whites. I don't worry too much about getting the mixture completely mixed together. That is why I get streaks of white. I would rather have some streaks instead of a flat chiffon cake.

5. Pour the batter into a chiffon, tube, or angel food pan and bake about 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

6. Remove from oven and immediately invert the cake and allow to cool about 2 hours. (Some people suggest inverting the pan on a wine bottle but I don’t really like the idea. The cake is up too high and is top heavy. If the cake should release itself from the pan, you have one hell of a mess. I like to rest/balance the inverted pan on two small three-inch high mini bundt cake pans. This allows enough air to pass so that the steam is release but is not too high that if the cake decides to release from the pan, it doesn’t gain any acceleration and damage itself as it falls.) Once the cake is cooled, gently run a knife or spatula around the edges and release cake by pushing the bottom up. Once you get the cake out of the pan, you will need to run a knife between the cake and the bottom portion of the pan to remove the tube. Be careful not to scratch the pans. I never serve baked goods in the pan that they were cooked in. I don’t trust people with knives cutting into my pans.

See the egg white streak?

High Altitude: I bake at high altitude (5,280 ft above sea level) and I usually try baking things first without making any suggested altitude adjustments and see the results. If I don’t like the results, I will try one of the suggestions. In this case, I didn’t have do adjust. The cake rose really nicely in the oven but during the last ten minutes of baking, it slightly deflated and collapsed a bit but the cake was still very moist, fluffy and yummy. Some adjustments to consider if not successful: slightly under-beat the whites, use less baking powder, place the cake in a cool instead of a preheated oven and bake for regular time.

So one of the reasons why I have been neglecting the blog is because of baseball. For us, baseball season started on April 10th and although we have not gone to every game, we still spend a lot of time watching it on tv. (Who would have thought that I would watch baseball on tv? Strange.) We went last night. The bf is going tonight and tomorrow.

Dinger, our mascot is dancing on top of the visiting team's dugout during the 7th inning stretch.

We are dedicated fans. It was 35 degrees out last night and the Rockies were playing one of their regular teams (the Padres). The top deck and the rockpile were pretty much empty. We are baseball snobs. We won't go to a baseball game if we have to sit on the upper deck.

Below is a picture of Brad Hawpe. He was injured during last night's game. It was very tense last night as we watched him lay on the ground for a good 5 - 10 minutes after he was hit in the head by a baseball. The catcher tried to throw him out on second base and the ball hit him. I hope he recovers soon.

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