Lavender Earl Grey Cupcakes

My second daughter is a picky eater. She can eat a lot if she likes what she's eating. Otherwise, she can stay hungry for many hours. Cakes happen to be her favourite &, ironically, she is more adventurous  to try new cake flavours. She once tried a lavender earl grey cake from a cafe she used to work at & fell in love with it. And recently, she persuaded me to bake one & assured me that it would be worth it. Well...... I was quite hesitant at first because, unlike her, I'm more old fashioned. I like to stick to the traditional..... vanilla, chocolate or pandan. But I gave in as I was convinced that she'd like it & besides,  I got to blog about a new recipe! It's a win-win situation! 

If you are a milk tea drinker, it's easy for you to imagine the taste of these cuppies. But with the addition of dried lavender flowers, the soft & moist cakes also have a light & sweet floral smell. Pairing the cakes with cream cheese frosting was a good choice as the tangy frosting gives a good balance to the sweet cakes. The sprinkled lavender on the frosting not only makes the cupcakes pretty, but it gives off a stronger floral smells, but I wouldn't overdo it as it can be quite overwhelming...

Lavender Earl Grey Cupcakes.
Ingredients:
80 ml (1/3 cup) milk
2 Earl Grey tea bags
100g cake flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp dried lavender
1/4 tsp salt
65g butter
90g sugar
30g honey
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 egg

Frosting (I used cream cheese frosting, recipe follows.)

dried lavender for sprinkling on top of cakes

Method:

1. Heat the  milk until very hot but not boiling. Place the tea bags in the milk and steep until very strong. You’ll know the milk is ready to be used when it turns a deep caramel color (about 10-12 minutes). You can even choose to do this step the day before you plan to make the cupcakes. Steeping the tea overnight will create a pronounced tea flavour in the baked cupcakes.
2. Preheat oven to 180 deg C. Allow butter and eggs to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, line muffin cups with paper bake cups. (I used 10 medium paper scouffle  cups.)
3. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, dried lavender & salt. Set aside.
4. In another mixing bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, honey & vanilla & beat until combined. Add egg & beat well.  Alternately add flour mixture & milk to butter mixture, beating on low speed  after each addition just until mixture is combined.
5. Bake for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cupcakes in muffin cups on wire rack for 10 minutes. Then remove cakes from pan & cool completely on wire rack.
6. Pipe or spread frosting on the cuppies & sprinkle with dried lavender.

Adapted from Heather Baird @ BHG

Cream Cheese Frosting

130g cream cheese

30g butter

75g sugar

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl & beat until creamy.

Moist Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Chocolate Frosting

These cakes were baked many many weeks ago. I was looking for a chocolate cake recipe and this one caught my eyes. The method of mixing is rather unusual for a cake and the batter is also very watery. Surprisingly, the cakes turn out very moist and delicious. For the topping, I chose the rich and tangy cream cheese chocolate frosting. Perfect combination!

Moist Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Chocolate Frosting

CUPCAKES
Ingredients:
60g plain flour
18g cocoa powder (I used Valrhona.)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
40g brown sugar
40g caster sugar
1 tsp instant coffee granules (optional)
1 small egg
50ml  fresh milk (I used UHT.)
30ml canola oil (or any vegetable oil)
1 tsp vanilla extract
50 ml boiling water

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line a standard cupcake tray with 6 cupcake liners.
2. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda & salt into a large bowl.
3. Add the sugars, coffee, egg, milk, oil & vanilla. Beat using a mixer until combined. Scrape the sides of the bowl. 
4. Then add the boiling water and mix until just combined. The batter will be very watery so don't be alarm. 
5. Pour the batter into a measuring cup (it's so much easier and cleaner than using a spoon) & pour evenly into the liners. Place into the oven & bake for 20-22 minutes or until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. 
6. Remove from the oven & leave the cakes in the pan for about 10 minutes. Transfer the cupcakes from the pan  to a cooling rack & leave to cool completely before frosting. 

Makes about 6 standard size cupcakes.
Adapted from Chelsea.

CREAM CHEESE CHOCOLATE FROSTING
Ingredients:

125g cream cheese, softened
90g confectioners' sugar
30g unsalted butter, softened
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
16g unsweetened cocoa powder (I used Valrhona.)
2 tbsps milk (only if necessary)

Method:

        In a bowl, beat together the cream cheese, confectioner's sugar, butter, salt, vanilla & cocoa powder to a spreadable consistency. Beat in milk, if necessary, to adjust consistency of cream. Spread onto cooled cupcakes.

Adapted from Allrecipes.

I'm linking this post to the Little Thumbs Up (February 2015) - Cocoa event organised by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids & Doreen of my little favourite DIY & hosted by Grace of Life can be Simple.

Vanilla Malted Cookies

The new year started out very well for me, at least as far as baking is concerned.... I baked Turkish Pide for breakfast (again!), &  in the afternoon, I baked some cookies, something I've not done for sometime.... I would have carried on baking something else but we had planned to go out for lunch. Anyway, I was busy baking & the helper was on leave, so lunch would certainly not be home cooked. Good thing we had the pide for breakfast as it sustained us well through the late afternoon...

I found the recipe for these Vanilla Malted Cookies on The Little Epicurean. What made me want to test this recipe out was the use of 2 ingredients which I love a lot,  Horlicks & cream cheese. They certainly made these cookies so addictive that none would have been left behind had I not hidden some for my photo shoot. Maryanne is right, the marvelous taste just leaves you craving for more. 

My little helpers....

Vanilla Malted Cookies

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups (340g) all-purpose flour - I used pastry flour, aka top flour.
1 cup (140g) malted milk powder - I used Horlicks.
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp fine sea salt
1 cup (250g) unsalted butter, room temperature
4 oz (125g) cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar - I used 170g.
1 tbsp vanilla bean paste
1 large egg

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 deg F (177 deg C). 
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, malted milk powder, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together butter and cream cheese until smooth. Slowly add in sugar. Mix until combined. Add vanilla paste and egg. Mix on medium speed until combined. Add flour mixture 1/2 cup at a time on low speed.
4. Transfer batter to a large piping bag fitted with a large star tip. Pipe rosettes (or strips, circles) onto parchment lined baking sheets. Space cookies at least 1-inch apart. Bake for 14 minutes, rotating sheet midway through baking. (I baked mine at 170 deg C for about 25 minutes.) Bake until edges are lightly golden brown. 
5. Let cool in tray for a couple of minutes before transferring to wire rack to cool completely. 

Source: The Little Epicurean.

Original recipe: Martha Stewart's Cookies

Notes:

1. I reduced the sugar by 30g & I'm glad I did that because the cookies were not overly sweet.
2. To add some interest to the otherwise plain-looking cookies, I sprinkled some colourful jimmies.

I’m submitting this post to Best Recipes for Everyone Jan & Feb 2015 Event Theme: My Homemade Cookies organized by Fion of XuanHom’s Mom and co-hosted by Victoria Bakes.

Red Velvet Cupcakes

My daughter & I were so excited when we saw the mini red velvet cupcakes, which I baked on Saturday, just out of the oven. The colour was just so gorgeous, the cakes rose quite neatly & I really love the size! They're so cute!!

But when it was time for me to frost them, I got quite anxious because  my piping skill is pretty bad. That's why, if you notice, I've not piped any of my cakes for this blog... I'd just spreaded the frosting with a spatula.. But this time, I was determined to pipe the frosting although the cream cheese frosting (which has dairy whip cream in it) was quite challenging to handle given the hot & humid weather we have here in Singapore.  Next time I'm piping any frosting on a cake, I would not use dairy whip cream even though it tastes so good. Ok.. I'll leave you with the recipe & more pictures for you to admire... hehe. I couldn't stop admiring the cuties myself!

Red Velvet Cupcakes
Recipe by Joy of Baking.

Ingredients:

125g (1 1/4 cups) sifted cake flour

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

10g (1 tbsp) regular or Dutch-processed cocoa powder

57g (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature

150g (3/4 cups) granulated white sugar

1 large egg

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

120ml (1/2 cup) buttermilk

1 tbsp liquid red food coloring

1/2 tsp white distilled vinegar

1/2 tsp baking soda

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 175 deg C (350 deg F) & line 12 muffin tins with paper cupcake liners.
2. In a large bowl sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder.
3. In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until soft (about 1-2 minutes). Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). Add the egg and beat until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the vanilla extract and beat until combined.
4. In a measuring cup whisk the buttermilk with the red food colouring. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk to the butter mixture, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour.
5. In a small cup, combine the vinegar and baking soda. Allow the mixture to fizz and then quickly fold into the cake batter. 
6. Working quickly, divide the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups and smooth the tops with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 18 - 23 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcakes comes out clean.
7. Cool the cakes in their pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes and then remove from pan. Let cool completely before frosting. Either spread the frosting with a knife or offset spatula, or use a large 1M Wilton open star decorating tip to pipe the frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting

227g (8 oz) cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
60g (1/2 cup) confectioners' (icing or powdered) sugar, sifted
160 ml (2/3 cup) cold heavy whipping cream (double cream) (35-40% butterfat)

Method:

1. In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth.
2. Add the vanilla and confectioners sugar and beat until smooth.
3. Using the whisk attachment, gradually add the heavy cream* (See Note) and whip until the frosting is thick enough to pipe. Add more sugar or cream as needed to get the right consistency.

Note: 

You must use a brand of heavy cream that whips very easily to stiff peaks. If you are using a brand of heavy cream that does not whip easily to stiff peaks then whip the heavy cream separately to stiff peaks and then fold it into the cream cheese mixture.

Makes 12 cupcakes. (I used the mini muffin pans. The recipe yields about 26 small cupcakes.)

Oreo Cheesecake

My youngest son, Maisur, requested a home-baked Oreo Cheesecake for his 10th birthday. Although his birthday was last Wednesday, I told him I could only bake it on Friday, a  holiday to commemorate Teachers' Day. He didn't mind, as long as I bake one. 

This time, I chose a recipe by George Geary, a professional cheesecake teacher & baker. From the scribble I made on the recipe page, I realised this was my second time using this recipe. The whole family loves this luscious cheesecake, especially the birthday boy! He can't stop eating it!

Chocolate Cookie (Oreo) Cheesecake
Recipe by George Geary from 125 Best Cheesecake Recipes.

Crust:
1&1/4 cups chocolate sandwich cookie crumbs (I used 21 Oreo cookies & removed the filling.)
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
10 chocolate sandwich cookies (These are for decorating the side of pan, but I didn't do this.)

1. In a medium bowl, combine cookie crumbs & butter. Press into cheesecake pan. 
2. Cut sandwich cookies in half at the cream filling. Place each half, cookie side, against side of pan, one after another, creating a wall of chocolate sandwich cookies. 
3. Set aside in the freezer to firm.

Filling:
3 packages (each 8oz/250g) cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream (I used Marigold low-fat yogurt.)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla (I used 3 tsp pure vanilla paste.)
4 chocolate sandwich cookies, quartered - I used 6.

1. Preheat oven to 350 deg F (180 deg C). 
2. Prepare a 9-inch (23cm) cheesecake pan, ungreased, or springform pan with 3-inch (7.5cm) sides, greased. (I used a 9-inch square cheesecake pan, i.e, a pan with removable base, just like a tart pan.)
3. In a large mixer bowl, beat cream cheese, sour cream & sugar on medium high speed for 3 minutes. (I beat until the cream cheese is smooth.)
4. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.
5. Stir in vanilla. 
6. Fold in quartered cookies. 
7. Pour batter over frozen crust. Bake in preheated oven for 45-55 minutes or until the top is light brown & the center has a slight jiggle to it. (I baked using water-bath method.)
8. Cool on a rack for 2 hours. Cover with plastic wrap & refrigerate for at least 6 hours before decorating.

Decoration - Classic Whipped Cream: ( I didn't decorate my cake.)
1/2 cup whipping (35%) cream
2 tbsp granulated sugar

1. In a well-chilled bowl, whip cream on medium-high speed until soft peaks form. 
2. With the mixer still running, sprinkle sugar into cream & continue whipping until firm peaks form. 
3. Ice top of cheesecake with whipped cream & top with chocolate sandwich cookies.

I'm linking this post to Cook-Your-Books No 4 hosted by Joyce from Kitchen Flavours.

Creamy & Fluffy Cheesecake

After a delightful experience with the Creamy Cheesecake a week ago, I'm here with a cheesecake again... This time, as I've mentioned I was going to do, I did a slight tweak to the method, in the hope of duplicating The Coffee Bean Chicago Cheesecake, at least the texture.... 

So, did I succeed? Well, I think I was not exactly there..... but almost.. I'm very happy with the result though. So, beating the egg whites separately did produce a fluffier cheesecake, just like the Souffle Cheesecake. 

I'm also happy with how it tastes this time... rich & creamy but not so tangy. This time, I reduced the Greek yogurt significantly & mixed it with a can of cream. Hmmm.... I wonder what the outcome would be if I were to use whipping cream... No... I'm not going to experiment with that so soon.. or we'll all be cheesecake overload! 

Ok.. before I leave you with the recipe, just some notes:

1. This recipe is still based on the recipe by Dorie Greenspan.
2. You may vary the combination of cream & yogurt. It all depends on how creamy or tangy you want the cheesecake to be.
3. Again, mine is the low version, so if you want a tall cake, just double up the cheesecake ingredients.

Creamy & Fluffy Cheesecake

For the crust:
170g (1 3/4) cups graham cracker crumbs
30g (3 tbsp) sugar
pinch of salt
60g (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

For the cheesecake:
500g (two 250g boxes) cream cheese, at room temperature
120g (2/3 cups sugar) - divided
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp pure vanilla paste
2 large eggs (separated), at room temperature
1 can (170g) Nestle cream (sterilised pure dairy cream)
50g (3 tbsp) Greek yogurt

This is the cream that I used. Picture taken from fairprice.com.sg.

To make the crust:

1. Butter a 9-inch square (with removable bottom) or  round springform pan & wrap the bottom of the pan in a double layer of aluminium foil. Put the pan on a baking sheet.
2. Stir the crumbs, sugar and salt together in a medium bowl. Pour over the melted butter and stir until all of the dry ingredients are uniformly moist. Turn the ingredients into the buttered  pan & use your fingers to pat an even layer of crumbs along the bottom of the pan. You may put the pan in the freezer while you preheat the oven. I didn't do that.
3. Center a rack in the oven, preheat the oven to 180°C & place the pan on a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. Set the crust aside to cool on a rack while you make the cheesecake.
4. Reduce the oven temperature to 170°C

To make the cheesecake:

1. Put a kettle of water on to boil.
2. Working in a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese at medium speed until it is soft and lives up to the creamy part of its name, about 4 minutes. With the mixer running, add salt & 3/4 of the sugar & continue to beat another 4 minutes or so, until the cream cheese is light. Beat in the vanilla. Add the egg yolk one by one, beating for a full minute after each addition. Reduce the mixer speed to low and stir in the cream & greek yogurt. Set aside.
3. Place the egg white in a mixing bowl & beat on medium speed for about 1 minute. Then add the rest of sugar & continue beating until soft peak.
4. Scoop 1/3 of meringue into the cream cheese mixture & fold in, preferably, using a hand whisk. Then add in the rest of meringue & continue mixing until well blended.
5. Put the foil-wrapped baking pan in the roaster pan.
6. Scrape the batter into the baking pan. Put the roasting pan in the oven and pour enough boiling water into the roaster to come halfway up the sides of the baking pan.
7. Bake the cheesecake for 50 minutes, at which point the top will be browned. Turn off the oven's heat and prop the oven door open with a wooden spoon. Allow the cheesecake to luxuriate in its water bath for another hour.
8. After 1 hour, carefully pull the setup out of the oven, lift the pan out of the roaster—be careful, there may be some hot water in the aluminium foil—remove the foil. Let the cheesecake come to room temperature on a cooling rack.
9. When the cake is cool, cover the top lightly and chill the cake for at least 4 hours. Chill it overnight for better flavour.

Cold-Oven Cream Cheese Pound Cake

This is my first time baking a cake in a cold oven. I never knew we could do that... Apparently, baking this Cream Cheese Pound cake in a cold oven gives it time to rise nicely. The crust is golden-brown & the crumb is moist & velvety. However, I found it quite sweet when I took a bite on the day I baked it. But the next day,  it tasted much better. Still, the next time I bake this, I think I'll reduce the sugar slightly.

Cold-Oven Cream Cheese Pound Cake
Recipe by  Lauren Chattman from Cake Keeper.

3 cups cake flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2-1/2 cups sugar
6 eggs,  room temperature
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1-1/2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger (I didn't use.)
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest

1. Adjust the oven rack to the lower-middle position. Grease a 12-cup Bundt pan and dust with flour. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium mixing bowl.
2. Combine the butter, cream cheese, and sugar in a large mixing bowl and cream with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
3. With the mixer on medium speed, add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Beat in the vanilla, ginger and lemon zest.
4. Turn the mixer to low speed and add the flour mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. After the last addition, mix for 30 seconds on medium speed.
5. Place the cake in a cold oven. Turn the oven to 325F and bake, without opening the oven door, until the cake is golden brown and toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 65 to 80 minutes.
6. Cool the cake in pan for 15 minutes, then invert it onto rack. Cool completely before slicing and serving.
7. Store uneaten cake in a cake keeper or wrap in plastic and store at room temperature for up to 3 days.

NB: I made only half the recipe & baked in 6 mini bundt pans for about 35 minutes.

I am submitting this post to Bake-Along #38 hosted by Joyce of  Kitchen Flavours, Lena  of Frozen Wings and Bake for Happy Kids.