Cendol Pudding

I made cendol pudding yesterday.. just wanted to use up the big packet of cendol left in the fridge for almost a month. Besides, the weather  has been almost unbearably humid.... so I made this cool  dessert for my family's weekly gathering at my mum's place. 

This recipe has already been used by many bloggers. It's a goood recipe.... moderately sweet & rich, but that's after adding more water to the recipe, because I prefer slightly soft pudding. I added 100ml more water for each layer. 

Cendol Pudding

Recipe by tuntung15 @ My Resipi.

Bottom layer:

500ml water - I used 600ml

180g caster sugar

300ml thick coconut milk

10g agar-agar powder

500g cendol

1 pandan leave (torn) - I added.

salt

1. Combine water, agar-agar powder, pandan leave & sugar in a pot & boil. 
2. Add in coconut milk & salt & keep stirring until mixture boils slightly. 
3. Remove pandan leave & add in cendol & stir. Pour into a pan (10x10 inch) or jelly mould. Leave aside until jelly is set. Once set, gently scratch top of layer with fork. 

Notes:
-wet mould with water before pouring jelly mixture so that it's easy to remove jelly when it's set.

- you may also line pan with plastic if using square, rectangle or round pan.

- while waiting for the bottom layer to set, prepare top layer.

- I placed mould in a tray & poured ice cold water to accelerate the cooling & hardening process since the bottom layer was still soft when the mixture for top layer was ready.

Top layer:

500ml water - I used 600ml

200g palm sugar (gula melaka)

300ml thick coconut milk

10g agar-agar powder

1 egg yolk - slightly beaten

1 pandan leave - I added.

salt to taste

1. Combine palm sugar, pandan leave & part of water in a pan. Heat up until sugar dissolves. Strain the sugar solution.
2. Combine sugar solution, agar-agar powder & the remaining water in a pot & heat up until mixture boils.
3. Combine coconut milk, egg yolk & salt. Mix until well blended. Remove pandan leave.
4. Pour coconut milk mixture into the pot of jelly mixture & continue heating & stirring until it boils slightly.
5. Remove from heat & pour mixture gently onto the first layer. Set aside  to cool. Chill before serving.

Apple Crumble Slice

This apple crumble was supposed to be for dessert after lunch but everyone in the house couldn't wait to eat it!  So we had it for brunch instead! This is my family's all time favourite apple dessert. From the response of the picture I posted in my facebook page, I reckon it's many people's favourite too. I've made this a few times. So far, everyone liked it, even a colleague who didn't like any apple-based dessert. So if you like apple crumble, then you must try this recipe.

Apple Crumble Slice
Recipe by Donna Hay.

Ingredients:
cake
100g butter - at room temperature
½ cup (110g) caster (superfine) sugar - I used 100g only.
1 egg
1 cup plain (all-purpose) flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder, sifted
1 tablespoon milk
1 tsp pure vanilla paste (I added.)
 icing (confectioner's) sugar, to dust - I didn't use.

apple filling
5 apples (peeled and chopped) - I used Granny Smith, the green ones.
10g butter
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon - I used more.

crumble topping
1¼ cups (185g) plain (all-purpose) flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
125g butter (I used very cold butter. I chopped it into medium pieces & left it in the freezer until needed.)
 ¾ cup (165g) caster (superfine) sugar - I used 150g only.
50g chopped walnut (I added.)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 160°C (320ºF). 
2. To make the crumble, mix the flour, baking powder, butter and sugar in a bowl until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add walnut. Set aside. (I left it in the fridge.)
3. To make the apple filling, place the apple, butter and cinnamon in a saucepan over low heat and cook for 5 minutes or until softened. Allow to cool.
4. For the cake base, place the butter and sugar in an electric mixer and beat until creamy. Add the egg and beat well. Fold through the flour, baking powder and milk. Spread in a 20cm x 30cm tin (You can also use a 10 x10 inch tin.) lined with non-stick baking paper, top with the apple filling and crumble and bake for 40 minutes until golden. Serves 6–8.

Soufflé Cheesecake - A Japanese Cheesecake

This Soufflé Cheesecake is not the typical dense cheesecake that makes me stop at just a few bites. Its light & airy texture made it quite easy for me to finish the whole slice in the picture. It's also easy for my family to finish the whole cake in just 2 days!

Some points to take note if you wish to try this recipe.

1) For the sponge base, I used an 8-inch pan as recommended by Chef Yamashita. The cake came out quite high, as you can see here. I sliced horizontally about 1cm high for the cheesecake base. I'm going to use the rest of the sponge to assemble another cake. I also used an 8-inch pan for the cheesecake, instead of a smaller pan as specified in the recipe... I think the height of my cheesecake is just nice.

2) The sponge recipe uses glucose. It's a thick sugar invert syrup. According to Chef Yamashita, it adds body to the end product & helps cakes remain soft & moist. Unlike honey, glucose does not impart any flavour of its own.

3) When preparing the meringue for this sponge, just beat the egg white until it turns white but still runny, not soft peak like is normally required.

4) This cake is best eaten the next day when the flavour has fully developed. I tasted a slice yesterday & today. The cake tasted better today.... so it's worth to be patient. 

Soufflé Cheesecake
Recipe by Yamashita Masataka from Tanoshii, Joy of Making Japanese-style Cakes and Desserts.

1 round sponge, 18cm x 0.5 cm (recipe below)
300g cream cheese, at room temperature
3 eggs, yolks & whites separated
24g pastry flour (top flour), sifted
75g milk
75 g heavy cream
1/2 lemon, grated for zest & squeezed for 30g juice
60g sugar
icing sugar for dusting

1. Preheat oven to 200 deg C. Line an 18-cm round baking tin  with parchment paper, leaving a 2-cm overhang. (I used an 8-inch round pan.) Place sponge into base of baking tin. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl & using a hand whisk, whisk cream cheese until smooth. Add 2 egg yolks & whisk until incorporated, then whisk in remaining egg yolk.
3. Whisk in flour. Set aside. Bring milk & heavy cream to a simmer over low heat. Add to batter & whisk until fully incorporated. Mix in lemon zest & juice. Set aside.
4. Prepare meringue. In a large bowl & using a handheld mixer, whisk egg white & sugar at high speed until white & still runny.
5. Fold meringue into batter, half portion at a time. Pour into prepared tin & place in a deep baking tray. Fill tray with water to come 1 cm up the side of tin. (Note by chef: When incorporating the meringue into the batter, folk briskly & be careful not t deflate the meringue or the cake will lose its light & airy texture.)
6. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the top cake is light brown. Lower oven temperature to 160 deg C & continue baking for another 40-48 minutes.
7. Test if cake is done by pressing the center of cake lightly. It should spring back. Remove baking tin from water bath & leave to cool for 5 minutes.
8. Turn cake onto a plate & peel off parchment paper. Leave to cool, then cover with a plastic container & refrigerate for 2 hours before serving.
9. Dust cake with icing sugar & decorate if desired just before serving. This souffle can be kept refrigerated for up to 2 days.

 

Sponge Cake
25g unsalted butter
40g milk
300g eggs (about 6 eggs), at room temperature
170g sugar
16g honey
16g glucose
170g pastry flour (top flour), sifted

1. Preheat oven to 180 deg C. Line a 21-cm (8 inch) round baking tin with parchment paper, leaving a 2-cm overhang. Simmer butter & milk until butter is melted. Remove from heat.
2. Fill a pot with water up to 4 cm high & simmer over medium heat. In a heatproof bowl, lightly whisk eggs, sugar, honey & glucose.
3. Place bowl over pot of simmering water & whisk constantly in large strokes until mixture is warm, about 40 deg C. Transfer to the mixing bowl of a stand mixer.
4.  Using a stand mixer, whisk mixture at high speed until tripled in volume & very pale. Use the whisk to draw a ribbon in the batter. The shape should not dissolve  immediately.
5. Using a spatula, fold in flour, a third at a time, ensuring full incorporation after each addition. Turn the bowl as you fold the flour in & scrape base & sides of bowl well.
6. Using a rubber spatula & mixing in a circular motion, mix in warm milk & butter mixtrue. Mix thoroughly, scraping base & sides of bowl. Stop as soon as mixture is even.
7. Pour the batter into prepared baking tin & bake fro 35-40 minute, until top of cake is golden brown & skewer inserted into the centre of cake comes out clean.
8. Unmould sponge & place on a wire rack to cool for about 30 minutes before peeling off parchment paper. Sponge is now ready for use.

Bangkit Kacang Hijau

Green bean bangkit cookie is one of the many variations of the traditional kuih bangkit that have been created. I've bookmarked this recipe for quite sometime so last weekend, I finally tried it.... that's after an unplanned purchase of  a pack of roasted green bean flour on a recent trip to JB.

This is not like the melt-in-the-mouth type of bangkit you may have ever eaten. It's moderately crunchy & has a strong green bean flavour. Personally, I like the traditional bangkit better even though I like anything that has green bean flour as an ingredient like Tepung Gomak, Batang Buruk or Kuih Laman Sari. 

Bangkit Kacang Hijau 
(Green Bean Bangkit Cookies)
Recipe by Aini Salim from Resepi Pesta Perut 2002.

Ingredients:
340g tapioca flour
30g plain flour
4 pandan leaves (torn)
320 ml thick coconut milk (from 2 whole coconuts) - you may not need to use all
190g icing sugar
2 small egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla powder (I used vanilla paste.)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 baking powder
140g roasted green flour (store-bought)

1. Combine tapioca, plain flour & pandan leaves & fry until flour is light & pandan becomes dry. (I placed them  in a baking pan lined with baking paper & baked for about 1 hour 15 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes.) Leave aside to cool for 1 day. Sift & set aside.
2. Place coconut milk in a pot & heat it up, stirring continuously, until it boils. Remove from heat & leave to cool.
3. Combine egg yolk, vanilla powder, salt & baking powder & mix thoroughly using a hand whisk.
4. Add in half coconut milk & continue stirring. Then add in all 3 types of flour & mix. Add the rest of coconut milk,  bit by bit, & mix until a soft & pliable dough is formed.
5. Place dough between two pieces of plastics & roll out to desired thickness. Cut out dough using a cookie cutter. Place cookies on a lined baking pan, leaving 1-cm spacing between them. Leave unbaked cookies to rest for at least one hour.
6. Bake in a preheated oven at 170deg C for about 20 - 25 minutes.