玉米三层糕 Three Layer Corn Cake

I am a huge fan of local kuihs, particularly the sweet and savory ones. However when it comes to making the kuih myself I started to withdraw away. Why is that so? I guess it has something to do with the santan preparation (coconut milk) and the cooking method ....steaming, which, I rendered troublesome. 

That was the wrong perception I held, considering the fact cakes and pastries making require more (before and after) preparation work than that of making our local steam kuihs, in general. Of course there are still some which need advance preparation of the base ingredients since most of the flavor comes from unprocessed sources of fresh vegetables, roots, leaves or raw sugar. In summary, they use simpler cooking method, usually through steaming than oven baking. 

Given that the batter from the kuih can be baked with an oven instead of using steamer alone, I could end up eating  a hardened, cracked or dried out cake. Or maybe not. The enjoyment of eating the local sweet and savory kuihs come from the 'Chewy Melt in the Mouth' sensation right down to the part when the cake smoothly glides down the throat. I doubt I could still get this wonderful feeling from the coarse cake like texture once the kuih come out baked from the oven. 

Perhaps I might try out one day.

Right now, I am going to enjoy this batch of Three Layer Corn Cake / Kuihs and leave the issue of oven baked kuih till another time.  Along with the 椰林风光 Coconut Flavor Kuih I recently posted, both of these wonderful recipes are taken from the book 'Malaysian Kuehs and Snacks 粿香满堂' by Andrew Kow 许孙祥. I am linking back this posting to Cook-Your-Books-24 hosted by Joyce of Kitchen Flavors. 

Enjoy....

玉米三层糕 
Three Layer Corn Cake

Ingredients
(A)
250g Canned Corn Kernel

(B)
100g Rice Flour
50g Tapioca Flour
20g Corn Flour
25g Custard Powder
100g Sugar
1/2 Tsp Salt
250ml Fresh Coconut Milk
230ml Water

(C)
100g Rice Flour
50g Tapioca Flour
40g Corn Flour
100g Sugar
250ml Fresh Coconut Milk
230ml Water
8-10 Drops Pandan Essence
Green Coloring (Optional)


Method

1. Grease and heat up (steam for 5 mins) several heat proof muffin cup moulds before using.
2. Combine ingredients (B) and filter. Cook the mixture under medium low heat until slightly thickened. Stir in (A) and mix until evenly combined.
3. Combine ingredients (C) and filter. Cook the mixture under medium low heat until slightly thickened.
4. Fill the muffin cups with 1 to 1-1/4 Tbsp of the pandan batter (C) as the first layer and steam at medium high heat for 10 minutes.
5. Fill the muffin cups with 1 to 1-1/4 Tbsp  of the corn batter (B) as the second layer and steam for another 10 minutes.
6. Repeat the process until you finished using the batter. Steam the last layer for 15 minutes until set.
7. Remove from heat and allow to the steamed cakes to cool in the baking cups until set and cool.
8. Serve.

Do link back to Coco Sweet Tooth if you have used any information as published in this blog.

This post is linked to Cook Your Books Event #24hosted by Joyce of Kitchen Flavours

Yoghurt New York Cheesecake

Ever time I come across a rich creamy and dense looking New York Cheesecake or related recipes, I promised myself that I 'would' get to start try making one soon. That promise took me almost 3 years to make good, even despite being a frequent baker who had whipped / used up dozens of blocks of cream cheese.  

Yes, I have made numerous cheesecake over the past three years but mostly were either souffle cheesecake or the lighter version with minimal cheese content.  This time I decided to go full fledge.....almost, but with the addition of yogurt which I wanted to dispose.

For this cake, I used sponge cake as the base instead of the crushed biscuits which this recipe normally prescribed. First, I am too lazy to crush the biscuits and the pressing of the crumbs into the cake pan. Somehow I don't fancy such task. Secondly, I dislike handling and the slicing of the cake with the biscuit layer. From past experience, the biscuit layer disintegrates or did not remain intact with the cheese cake layer when I sliced the cake.  

Thirdly, I get to select the flavor and color for the cake base when its made from a sponge cake made from scratch.

I am extremely happy with the outcome this time. By baking this cake over another layer of a larger fixed based cake pan, I do not risk having the cake getting moist at the base while also saving money on the usage of aluminum paper.

Yoghurt New York Cheesecake
Recipe adapted from Vivian Pang

Sponge Cake For The Base (A)
20g Corn Flour
20g Plain Flour
20g Self Raising Flour
2 Grade B Eggs
Salt
20g Corn Oil
80g Sugar
Few Drops of Chocolate Coloring

1 Tbsp Instant Coffee Powder
1 Tbsp Hot Water

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180C degrees. Line and grease the bottom of a 8-1/2 or 9inch cake pan.
2. In a mixing bowl, Sift and combine in all the various flours (A) together and set aside.
3. Prepare coffee mixture by mixing instant coffee powder with hot water and stir until well blended. Set aside.
4. In another mixing bowl, beat eggs and sugar till light and fluffy. Add in salt and continue beating for a minute before adding in corn oil and coffee mixture.
5. Fold in flour swiftly and gently until thoroughly combined. 
6. Transfer the batter into the prepared cake pan and tap the pan lightly on a table top to get rid of nay trapped air bubbles in the batter. 
7. Bake at 180C degrees for 10-12 minutes or until the toothpick inserted comes out clean.
8. Unmould the cake and allow to cool on a wire rack.

For The Cheese Cake (B)
565g Cream Cheese (softened to room temp)
160g Castor Sugar
2 Lemon Zest
2 Tsp Vanilla Extract

3 Tbsp Plain Flour
3 Grade A Eggs
225g Plain Yoghurt

Topping (Optional)
Cocoa Powder
Whipped Cream and shredded cheddar cheese

Method

Place the sponge cake layer into an 8 inch lined removable bottom pan or springform pan. 

Preheat the oven to 125C degrees.

Using an electric mixer, cream the cream cheese with the sugar together on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until the mixture turn light and fluffy. Reduce the speed to low, beat in  3Tbsp of flour and mix till combined.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition. Stir in the yogurt until just combined.

Pour batter into the prepared baking pan. Tap the pan lightly on a table top to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter. 

Place the 8 inch baking pan into another 9 inch or larger fixed based baking pan which could sufficiently accommodate the original baking pan. I prefer to use this method rather than to secure the cake pan with aluminum foil as usually (for me) the moisture / water managed to seep through the many layers of aluminum paper I wrapped the pan with. Thus, I choose to use this method and it also saves on buying the aluminum paper.  

Bake in water bath at 120-125C degrees for 70-75 mins or till set. 

Allow the cake to cool completely at room temperature before refrigerating for at least 2 hours before serving.

Top with whipped cream or dust with cocoa powder.

• Tip

  Mixing the ingredients

  The way you blend the ingredients is crucial: under-beating can lead to a lumpy mixture, over-beating can whip in too much air. This can result in uneven cooking, bubbles, and cracking.

• Tip

  Keep everything at room temperature

  Keep everything at room temperature. To avoid lumps and ensure even mixing without over-beating, it is essential to have the soft cheese at room temperature before starting. Ideally, let it come to room temperature in its pack for 2 hours. If you're short of time, cut the soft cheese into chunks and leave to soften for 1 hour. It also helps to have a tabletop mixer with a powerful motor. But if you don't have one, a hand-held mixer works fine.

夏威夷豆杂果面包 Macadamia Fruity Bread

Another great bread recipe from Alex Goh's 'Magic Bread'. This bread book had been once my daily bread bible when I started baking two years ago. As I progressed in my bread baking experience, this book has been sitting idly among the array of cook books waiting for their turn to be discovered. 

Two years later, I woke this book from its deep slumber and began leafing through it for something to bake as my forthcoming photography subject. This is how this bread recipe got selected and featured in this blog, mainly due to me wanting to use up the Grand  Manier orange alcohol and macadamia nuts previously bought for baking purposes but still left untouched in their respective storage place.

This is my second attempt at making this bread since year 2013, and during then I chose to use orange juice to soak the dried fruits instead. As for whether are there any difference between using orange juice and orange alcohol to infuse the dried fruits, I suppose there are. Since I stopped consuming alcohol after becoming a vegetarian, I usually rely on my sense of smell to gauge the taste of any non vegetarian food I prepare. This batch of macadamia fruit bread not only have stronger aromas than the orange juice infused ones, it also camouflage away the yeasty scent of the bread.

Yes yes I know, another bread making through sponge dough method. Requires slightly more steps and time to follow for every process right up until baking time. I can assure you it is an effort worth making to create this 'commercial' looking bread. A crowd pleaser.

夏威夷豆杂果面包 
Macadamia Fruity Bread

Ingredients
(A)
120g Bread Flour 高筋面粉
85g Boiling Water 滚水

(B)
280g Bread Flour 高筋面粉
60g Sugar 糖
1 Tsp Salt 盐
20g Milk Powder 奶粉
6g Instant Yeast 即用酵母粉
1 Nos. Orange Zest 柳橙皮屑

(C)
100g Cold Water 冷水
3 Egg Yolks 蛋黄

(D)
80g Butter 牛油

(E)
30g Sultanas 葡萄干
40g Golden Raisins 金黄葡萄干
40g Dried Cranberries 蔓越莓干
1-1/2 Tbsp Grand Manier / Orange Juice 柳橙酒 

(F)
20g Chopped Macadamia Nuts 切碎夏威夷豆
(Bake the nuts in the oven at 150C degrees for 10-13 mins.Chopped into fine bits and set side to cool for later use)


(G) Mexico Topping
60g Butter 牛油 (softened to room temp 四室内回温)
45g Sugar 糖
1 Egg 鸡蛋
65g Plain Flour 面粉
1/4 Tsp Baking Powder 发粉

• Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in egg and continue creaming until smooth. Add in flour and baking powder until evenly combined. Transfer the mixture into piping bag and set aside for later use. Any leftover toppings can be refrigerated for another 1-2 weeks for future use.

Method

Sponge Dough Method. Combine ingredients (A) and mix evenly to form a dough. Cover and set aside to cool. Refrigerate for at least 12 hours before using.

Premix E and set aside for at least an hour before using.

In the mixing bowl of a stand mixer fitted with dough hook, combine ingredients (B) and (C) together with lower speed to form a rough dough. Add in the overnight sponge dough (A) and continue kneading until all ingredients are well combined. 

Add (D) butter and continue kneading with medium speed to form an elastic dough. Once the dough can be stretched to a thin membrane without breaking, it is ready for proofing.

Transfer the dough to a slightly greased bowl and cover with cling wrap. Allow the dough to proof in a warm place for an hour or until doubled in size. I kept mine inside the idle and unheated oven for proofing.

Test the readiness of the dough with a finger lightly dusted with cake flour. The dough is ready when the dough remain indented after the finger poked into it.

Punch down the dough and divide the dough into 90g each and mould it round. Let it rest for another 10-15 mins.

Place the rounded dough onto baking mat / tray. I placed mine into  individual 5.5" muffin paper liners. Apply egg wash onto the surface and sprinkle chopped macadamia nuts. Allow the dough to proof for another 50 minutes.

Pipe the mexico topping over the dough and bake in a preheated oven at 180C degrees for 15 mins.

Do link back to Coco Sweet Tooth if you have used any information as published in this blog.

This post is linked to Cook Your Books Event #24hosted by Joyce of Kitchen Flavours