Tasty Tiramisu Anyone?

Tiramisu. The name itself used to conjure images of mysterious eastern destinations and exotic localities in the Land of the Rising Sun until I found out that it is actually Italian in origin! Well, wherever it may have originated from, Tiramisu has a special place in my heart and a strong influence on my palate. The very first time the first spoonful of the decadent dessert passed through my lips, I fell in love with its smooth sweetness and coffee flavoured concoction. The Tiramisu I had was a decadent layer upon layer of coffee-tinged savoirardi or ladyfinger cookies and mascarpone cheese covered with chopped caramalized almonds. It was just heavenly! What I really like was its light and airy structure that did not overpower or sit heavily on the tummy. Literally translated, it means 'pick me up' and it sure did! Since then on, I would continue to search for the best Tiramisu wherever I had the opportunity during my travel in Malaysia and overseas. I've had many versions of  this dessert but the first one I tasted had to be one of the best.

After years of enjoying the fruit of labour of leading patisseries, I gathered the nerve to make my very first Tiramisu. I used chopped caramalized almonds and was happy to see the final result was not too far off from the one made by an experienced baker. Brought to the flea market at Amcorp Mall and despite its rather unstable appearance (after all, it should really be in a chiller!), my Tiramisu was quickly snapped up by our visitors. Will I do it again? You betcha!

RM85 per cake.

Bakescapes is now at Amcorp Mall Weekend Flea Market

Yes, folks! You heard it right! Due to overwhelming request from our friends and clients, we have set-up a semi-permanent booth at Amcorp Mall Weekend Flea Market every Saturday and Sunday. We've been getting a very positive feedback since we came onboard in October 2011. Every weekend, we'd bake our cakes and goodies fresh for consumption. So come on over if you can't wait to taste our baked goodies! 

 

 

Sweet Strawberry Cheesecake

I've always been fascinated with the berries family especially the luscious looking and sweet and tart strawberries. Their bright red colour never fails to excite my senses, making me want to sink my teeth into their juicy interior without any hesitation. Despite their rather tough exterior, strawberries are actually quite delicate and need to be consumed within days after being plucked from their heavy vines. They go well with quite a number of items such as whipped cream, brown sugar and of course, cream cheese. 

I like to pair my cheesecake with a variety of fruit and berries are especially delicious. And of course, Strawberry Cheesecake with a layer of sweet and sourish strawberry preserve with chunks of fruit slices is one of my favourite. And even more irresistible when I slice some strawberry and garnish the top of the cake. Strawberry and cream cheese is certainly a match made in heaven. 

 

RM70 per cake (1.2kg).

Red Velvet Cupcake with White Chocolate Buttercream

Red Velvet Cupcake with White Chocolate Buttercream and Cream Cheese Frosting

Really...do I need to say more? They're little miniature cups of red velvet goodness ordered by Faiz and Lam, whom I fondly called the Delectable Duo who were also my wedding photographers. Check 'em out at Lafa Pixellutions.

These are large cupcakes that come with a surprise inside - white chocolate buttercream! I can feel myself getting a sugar rush just looking at them.

Christmas Bake - Gingerbread Cookies

I first tasted gingerbread cookies many years ago at my friend's boyfriend's house in Ipoh. I also enjoyed the stuffed turkey, pudding and the great time we had just chatting around the Christmas tree. However, the one memory that stays with me all these years is the spicy, wholesome scent of the gingerbread cookies.

Last year's Christmas, I baked them for a few friends that were good enough to order from me. I decided to make them really festive and adorned them with sugar crystals and deco, and fondant. Check 'em out here!

Japanese Cheesecake

I love cheese in all form. If I'm not careful, I could even end up looking like a barrel of ripening cheese. Urgh...not an appetizing sight. One of my favourite things to do was to go to Jusco and buy their Japanese cheesecake. It's not much of a cheesecake but it wasn't too bad.

After much hesitation, I decided that it was time to challenge myself to venture into the unknown and bake an authentic Japanese Cheesecake. It's quite a temperemental cake and needs a gentle touch. It's healthier because you don't actually don't use a lot of cheese. Cheaper too! But it does use lots of eggs and you need to beat the white and yolk separately. It gets its lovely lightness of being from this type of aeration.

After about an hour, my masterpiece came out perfect. Made the mistake of letting the aluminium foil touch the surface that came off a bit. Other than this, it was delicious. Had to stop hubby from finishing it off all in one night. It's great for those who are not exactly fans of cheesecake as it does come off more like a light sponge cake.

Magic Sticks - Coconut, Chocolate and Almond Biscotti

I used to go to Starbuck for a cup of coffee...the magic words are 'used to' because with the slow economy, I do have to stretch and pinch. Somehow, I could never resist their selection of biscotti. Originating from Italy, biscotti is essentially a type of biscuit. Unlike the chewy American kinds, biscotti is hard...sometimes as hard as rock. They are made without any eggs and the liquid comes from either butter or oil. The ones made with butter tend to go rancid faster. But the ones that use oil can be pretty hard to chew on. That's why they are great for dunking in hot coffee or latte.

Getting kind of bored with baking traditional cookies such as chocolate chips, vanilla or even oatmeal cookies, I decided it's time to venture to biscotti world. It's actually quite easy to make and taste heavenly but what put most people off is the fact that you have to bake it twice. And if you're not careful, you can end up with cookie crumble instead of slices of magic.

I had all the ingredients to make my favourite - Coconut, Chocolate and Almond Biscotti. I love the crunchy slices of shredded or flaked coconut, the yummy chocolate chips and bits of almonds peeping through. I made it with butter so I had no choice but to finish the whole tumbler fast. Shared them with hubby and colleagues and they all gave the thumbs up!

Crab Quiche. So Delish!

I am quite hopeless when it comes to short crust pastry. Why? Definitely not because how easy it is to make but because I don't have a cutting board large enough to fit my lovely quiche pan. I ended up doing it on the kitchen countertop...which is not very hygenic, to say the least. Anyway, I was a happy camper the other day when I saw a silicone cutting board that wasn't too overpriced. Promptly bought it and the first thing I did was to surf the net for a few recommended recipes. Found a promising recipe on Allrecipes.com and decided to go ahead with it.

I didn't have much ingredient in the fridge but I did have some imitation crab meat (yup, imitation...but I'm happy because seriously, who has the time to boil, crack and dig into those nasty crusteaceans). The rest of the recipe just came together although I had to make some adjustment with the cheese. Only had cheddar so cheddar it was.

                         

After some rather nerve-wrecking time spent peeking into the trusted yet moody oven, I followed the ring of the bell that signaled that the quiche was ready with a careful lifting of the pan. Oh boy, you should have smelled the heady mixture of melted cheese, herbs, milk and cream. I resisted the temptation to take the whole pan out out and just gobbled it down. Anyway, my Crab Quiche was a huge success. I love my new cutting board and I intend to make many more quiche magic.

The Return of the Red Velvet Cake

The Return of the Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Red is the colour of passion and is my favourite actually. When I first moved into our new house a couple of years back, I had to seriously resist the temptation to paint the walls a fiery red. Would've driven my darling hubby nuts! Anyway, my kitchen cabinet is red and I'm loving it. Oops...sorry, I digress. We are after all talking about the popular Red Velvet Cake, I've baked quite a few over the years but it's just gaining a footing here in good ole Malaysia. A number of orders came in in the last couple of weeks and it seems that everybody's quite curious about this lovely cake. Not sure what it is? Well, contrary to some belief, it is actually not a chocolate cake. No sirree...cocoa is added for a subtle taste of richness. It's all about the colour and it does look gorgeous when sliced. Some prefer the traditional cream used in Southern USA but here, most prefer cream cheese. I do like cream cheese frosting as well.

This Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting was ordered by Suhadah. Hope she enjoys eating it as much as I enjoyed baking it.

White Chocolate with White Chocolate Buttercream ... Utter Decadence!

The funny thing about white chocolate is that fact that there is hardly any cocoa in them. Seriously, what is the whole point? I'm not exactly a chocolate fanatic...savoury pastries would bring me down on my knees, thanking God. But I do appreciate a good chocolate bar once in a while and the darker and more bitter it is, the more I'd swoon. White chocolate is quite a fascinating entity though and quite tricky to use in baking. I've tried a few recipes over time but haven't actually came across one that I like. Anyway, I purchased a huge block of white chocolate the other to experiment. Since I'm not a huge fan of white chocolate, most of this lovely concoction went to my neighbour's kids. This is truly quite a decadent recipe and uses huge amount of chocolate. Just crazy sweet!

Blueberry Cake

This Blueberry Cake is great for a simple tea party with your family and friends. I love to have slices of this cake with a cup of hot steaming cappuccino. It’s moist with a rich buttery taste and bursts of tart sweetness from the blueberries.

Blueberry Cake – RM45 per cake

Chocolate Brownie with Blueberry Cheesecake

For chocoholics and cheesecake lovers, this Chocolate Brownie with Blueberry Cheesecake is a marriage made in heaven. The dense, cakey brownie is the perfect accompaniment to the slightly sweet blueberry cheesecake. Every slice is like an explosion of senses. It’s a two-in-one celebration of taste.

Chocolate Brownie with Blueberry Cheesecake – RM65 per cake

Blueberry Cheesecake

The Blueberry Cheesecake is fast becoming a personal favourite! I can't stop stuffing my poor hubby with it. He's gaining quite a bit of weight around the middle part. The thing is I cannot use any of that low-fat cream cheese. It just won't taste the same. If you are a cheesecake fanatic like I am, this should be on your list of must-have.


My Blueberry Cheesecake has blueberries inside and outside, I cover it with a generous serving of blueberry syrup. It's not overtly sweet with a slight tartness from the lemon juice I added.

Blueberry Cheesecake - RM65 per cake

White Chocolate Cake with Apricot Buttercream

A dear friend of mine wanted something different for her son's birthday and I suggested 'White Chocolate Cake with Apricot Buttercream'. It's sophisticated enough for the adults and the kids, as most kids do, would love the creamy white chocolate icing. This is a three-layered cake with generous servings of apricot slices in rich vanilla buttercream. The outer icing is pure white chocolate, making this cake suitable for any special events.

 White Chocolate Cake with Apricot Buttercream - RM85 per cake

Orange and Poppy Seed Bundt Cake

I made this cake for a dear friend's wedding anniversary lunch. It's heavenly with a distinct orange scent and crunchy poppy seeds. The cake is moist and buttery, and I just love the bundt shape that allowed it to be decorated simply with dark and orange chocolate.

Orange and Poppy Seed Bundt Cake - RM55 per cake

Farewell soon to 2010!

Gosh! It's been ages since I last submitted any post to my dearest BakeScapes blog. It's been a challenging couple of months. My hubby lost his Mom to old age and my stepfather passed away within the same week from cardiac complication. Life certainly has thrown its loop...a rather large one, I may add. We also experienced another loss closer to home and our heart. Well, I've been told many times over the length of my lifetime that 'what doesn't kill you, make you stronger'. We will see, won't we?


Anyway, we are thankful for many things in our life and for me personally, my lovely kitchen remains a sanctuary. And I am glad that my friends and family continue to make me busy with orders upon orders. I continue to learn to be better at baking and hope to gain more knowledge as the New Year looms.


So, here's an early farewell to 2010. You shall not be forgotten.

Double Choc Chip Cookies with White Choc Nibs and Almond

Okay...the name is kind of long but if you're looking for a totally rich, chewy choc chip cookies, this is it! This is great with a glass of cold milk or dunk into hot chocolate drink. It can even rival the other 'famous' cookies. Around 2 inches wide, these are cookies for the fanatics.


Want to try? These are sold in batches of 30 pieces because they are just totally huge. Drop me a line at hanim27@hotmail.com.

Blueberry Surprise!

This is another type of cheese tart. The difference is that the blueberry is on the inside and there's more of them! I called these jewels 'Blueberry Surprise!". It's definitely richer because the tart shell itself is made using cream cheese. Talk about decadent. Made this batch for my brother and friends with tiny roses as decoration.


How to order? Drop me a line at hanim27@hotmail.com.

Blueberry Cheese Tart

The all time favourite Blueberry Cheese Tart. Made this latest batch for a friend's buka puasa gathering with her family.


How to order? Send me an email at hanim27@hotmail.com.

On Being Happy

Call me old-fashioned but one of my favourite movies of all time is the ‘Sound of Music’. For the uninitiated, the ‘Sound of Music’ tells the tale of a young nun-to-be who is sent to be a governess to the seven children of a handsome Navy Captain. As a musical, it was peppered with delightful and easy to remember songs such as ‘Do Re Mi’, ‘Edelweiss’, ‘Climb Every Mountain’ and many more. But my favourite song was the delightful ‘My Favourite Things’ sang by the lovely governess to her wards to calm their fear during one stormy night. It talks about whiskers on kittens, warm woolen mittens and raindrops on roses.

Well, one of my favourite things is the sweet scent of warm butter cakes, cinnamon raisin buns, rich chocolate brownies and many more baked goodies wafting through our home as they rise to perfection in my trusted oven. Every time I feel like I’ve been ran over by a steamroller or smashing another piece of china, I would revisit my well-thumbed notebook containing some of my favourite recipes. Soon, I would be covered in a thin mist of flour and splattered by bits of butter. And I couldn’t be happier. Within hours, I would soon be admiring another baked creation that comes from several unassuming and ordinary ingredients. Calm happiness prevails as I proudly present it to my husband, the designated tester, although his opinion can’t really be taken seriously. After all, he knows better not to say anything else but ‘nice’. And I continue to be happy.