Jelly Hearts

Made some jelly hearts with my friend the other day, and even though it is very time consuming, but the jelly hearts are such a delight to eat! Love how the different layers complement one another! We also made a blueberry version with blackcurrant jelly, and it tasted just as good as well.




Shall not post the recipe here because StoryOfBing.com has great pictorial guide! So head over to that website to have a look! :D

Good Luck!

Blackcurrant Cheese Tarts

Hello everyone, in case you might be wondering if I made a mistake in the title, that I typed blackcurrant instead of blueberry (blueberry cheese tarts are the more commonly found ones). Nope, I did not! Reason why I tweaked this recipe from blueberry to blackcurrant is because I only have blackcurrant jam at home! :P Thus, you can do the same too if you do not have blueberry/blackcurrant jam. Just use whatever jam that you like! Hopefully it turns out as nice as mine :D


Adapted from ReeseKitchen.

(This recipe yields about 16 middle sized tarts)

Pastry:
125g butter
60g fine granulated sugar
250g all purpose flour (plain flour)
1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
1 tbsp COLD water (may need more than that)

Method:
1. Sift flour and sugar into mixing bowl
2. Rub butter into flour until resembles coarse crumbs (rubbing method)

this method is similar to pineapple tarts!3. Add in egg yolk, vanilla and water
4. Shape dough into ball and refrigerate (20-30 minutes) before using
** (before using, take out fr fridge, wait for awhile until dough soften)
5. Place dough onto tart shells, and poke the base with fork (this is to let the air comes out while baking)
6. Bake at 160-170'C for 10-15 minutes or until brown

Filling:
250g cream cheese
20g butter
60g fine granulated sugar
1 egg

Method:
1. Beat cheese, butter and sugar together until fluffy
2. Add in egg and beat till well mix
3. Spoon some jam on the baked tart shells then fill it up with cream cheese mixture. Use toothpick or fork to create swirl effect!
4. Bake at 170-180'C for 10 minutes


Used a diabetic-friendly jam!

The inside of my tart and look at my cute minion nails! :D :D
Additional notes:
- Of course, I reduced the amount of sugar in both tart and filling! Reduced each by about 20g.
- I extended both baking durations by 10 min (not sure if it is the problem of my oven or what)

Ji Dan Gao (Steamed Egg Cake)

Annyeong! Ji Dan Gao is an old school delight that many people fondly remember as the snack that they used to nom on when they were young. My parents and older siblings are one of them as well. For myself, I do not remember eating this when I was young... Or maybe I was too young to remember then. I made this couple of weeks ago but it failed to turn out well. Maybe it was due to the baking powder that I used, the cake did not rise up well and hence resulted in a stiff cake. I cannot let it go that I failed, hence today I tried my luck again and hurray, I SUCCEED! You know, nothing tastes better than success.

The cake turned out to be really soft and fluffy. I believe it is due to the fact that it was steamed. Steamed food just have this alluring factor. Another interesting fact is that this cake uses carbonated drinks for it's soda that makes it rises up. The most important reason why I love this cake is that IT IS TOTALLY OIL FREE!!! Not a single drop of oil is used at all. Therefore, it made washing up super duper easy!! I hate washing up oily dishes everytime after I bake. Also, the oil free factor made this cake very addictive. I had to control my hands that were constantly reaching out for more of the cake.


Hehheh, I used peach flavoured fanta! That's the only can of soft drink that I could find at home. Luckily the peach flavoured didn't turn out to be strong.

Recipe adapted from thelittleteochew

Recipe
- 220g eggs excluding weight of shells (about 4 large eggs)
- 210g caster sugar (I reduced it to 150g)
- 230g cake flour or top flour (sifted 2 or 3 times)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 6 tbsp cream soda or 7-Up or Sprite

1. Whisk the eggs till frothy, then start adding sugar a little by little, to ensure it is well-incorporated. Add vanilla extract and continue beating until the batter becomes very pale, thick and creamy. This takes time, and there is no shortcut. Meanwhile, heat up your wok, pot or steamer until you get a gentle boil. Do make sure it is large enough to fit the cake tin and has ample space for the batter to rise and the steam to circulate.

2. Fold in the flour in thirds, alternating with the soda, and ending with flour. Once there are no streaks of flour, stop.

3. To steam, either pour the mixture into a bamboo steamer lined with greaseproof paper or use a 6 or 7-inch lined baking tin. Pop it into the wok, pot or steamer - then cover - and steam on high for 30mins.

4. Once done, place the cake on a rack and allow to cool before slicing.

See the cotton-like soft and fluffy inside?
Some points to take note:
- Beat the eggs mixture until frothy, it should turn out to be creamy looking.
- Steam your mixture as soon as possible. Avoid letting it rest for too long. I separated my mixture into 2 portions and steamed one after another. The second batch turned out to be less soft. I believe it is due to the long resting time that caused the rising agent in the cake to be less effective.
- You can omit the vanilla essence if you have a stronger egg taste. I added vanilla essence but my parents commented that it tasted less egg-y as those sold outside.
- Reduce the sugar amount further if you do not have a sweet tooth. However, refrain from huge reduction as it would definitely make a difference to the texture of the cake.


Many many love for this awesome cake!