[ah-jefu]

(made a while ago)

Banana strawberry cake =x 2 layers!


CNY Cake xD 2 layers again. tropical fruit filling <3

[-AngelzKiss-]

^ omg the way you wrote the "fok" on the cake with the pig is soooooo cute!

[ah-jefu]

ahaha =D ty lots =) my mom made me make a variation of something on the big asian calandar on my kitchen wall @_@;

[samarie]

hi *eseul & krnobsessed! here's the recipe. Use good quality chocolate like callebaut or valhrona. Queen mother's cake by maida heatter's Book of great desserts. Just made them into cupcakes instead of a big cake and i used chocolate buttercream instead of ganache.
Enjoy!


Queen Mother's Cake

This was in my first book. It is one of the most popular recipes in all of my books and is the one cake I make more often than any other.


I originally got the recipe in 1962 from a food column by Clementine Paddleford in The New York Herald Tribune.


The story is that Jan Smeterlin, the eminent Polish pianist, loved to cook. And he collected recipes. This is one that was given to him on a concert tour in Austria.


When the Queen Mother was invited to tea at the home of the Smeterlins, the hostess baked the cake according to Smeterlin's recipe. The Queen Mother loved it and asked for the recipe. Then--as the story goes--she served it often at her royal parties. Including the time she invited the Smeterlins to her home.


It is a flourless chocolate cake that is nothing like all of the flourless chocolate cakes that are so popular today. It is not as heavy or dense. This has ground almonds and the texture is almost light, although it is rich and moist. It is divine.


6 ounces (scant 1 1/2 cups) blanched or unblanched almonds

6 ounces semisweet chocolate, cut into small pieces

3/4 cup granulated sugar

6 ounces (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter

6 eggs, separated

1/8 teaspoon salt


1 teaspoon lemon juice

12 portions



First toast the almonds in a single layer in a shallow pan in a 350 degree oven for 12 to 15 minutes, shaking the pan a few times, until the almonds are lightly colored and have a delicious smell of toasted almonds when you open the oven door. Set aside to cool.

Adjust a rack one-third up in the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9 x 3-inch springform pan and line the bottom with a round of baking pan liner paper cut to fit. Butter the paper. Dust the pan all over with fine dry, bread crumbs, invert over paper, and tap lightly to shake out excess. Set the prepared pan aside.


Place the chocolate in the top of a small double boiler over warm water on moderate heat. Cover until partially melted, then uncover and stir until just melted and smooth. Remove the top of the double boiler and set it aside until tepid or room temperature.


Place the almonds and 1/4 cup of the sugar (reserve remaining 1/2 cup sugar) in a food processor fitted with a metal chopping blade. Process very well until the nuts are fine and powdery. Stop the machine once or twice, scrape down the sides, and continue to process. Process for at least a full minute. I have recently realized that the finer the nuts are, the better the cake will be. Set aside the ground nuts.


In the large bowl of an electric mixer beat the butter until soft. Add 1/4 cup of the sugar (reserve the remaining 1/4 cup sugar) and beat to mix. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating and scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary until smooth. On low speed add the chocolate and beat until mixed. Then add the processed almonds and beat, scraping the bowl, until incorporated.


Now the whites should be beaten in the large bowl of the mixer. If you don't have an additional large bowl for the mixer, transfer the chocolate mixture to any other large bowl. Wash the bowl and the beaters.

In the large bowl of the mixer, with clean beaters, beat the egg whites with the salt and lemon juice, starting on low speed and increasing it gradually. When the whites barely hold a soft shape, reduce the speed a bit and gradually add the remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Then, on high speed, continue to beat until the whites hold a straight point when the beaters are slowly raised. Do not overbeat.

Stir a large spoonful of the whites into the chocolate mixture to soften it a bit.

Then, in three additions, fold in the remaining whites. Do not fold thoroughly until the last addition and do not handle any more than necessary.

Turn the mixture into the prepared pan. Rotate the pan a bit briskly from left to right in order to level the batter.

Bake for 20 minutes at 375 degrees and then reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and continue to bake for an additional 50 minutes (total baking time is 1 hour and 10 minutes). Do not overbake; the cake should remain soft and moist in the center. (The top might crack a bit -- it's okay.)

The following direction was in the original recipe, and although I do not understand why, I always do it. Wet and slightly wring out a folded towel and place it on a smooth surface. Remove the cake pan from the oven and place it on the wet towel. Let stand until tepid, 50 to 60 minutes.

Release and remove the sides of the pan (do not cut around the sides with a knife--it will make the rim of the cake messy). Now let the cake stand until it is completely cool, or longer if you wish.

The cake will sink a little in the middle; the sides will be a little higher. Use a long, thin, sharp knife and cut the top level. Brush away loose crumbs.

Place a rack or a small board over the cake and carefully invert. Remove the bottom of the pan and the paper lining. The cake is now upside down; this is the way it will be iced. Place four strips of baking pan-liner paper (each about 3 x 12 inches) around the edges of a cake plate. With a large, wide spatula carefully transfer the cake to the plate; check to be sure that the cake is touching the papers all round (in order to keep the icing off the plate when you ice the cake).

If you have a cake-decorating turntable or a lazy Susan, place the cake plate on it.

Icing


1/2 cup whipping cream

2 teaspoons powdered (not granular) instant espresso or coffee (see Note)

8 ounces semisweet chocolate, cut into small pieces

Scald the cream in a 5- to 6-cup saucepan over moderate heat until it begins to form small bubbles around the edges or a thin skin on top. Add the dry espresso or coffee and whisk to dissolve. Add the chocolate and stir occasionally over heat for 1 minute. Then remove the pan from the heat and whisk or stir until the chocolate is all melted and the mixture is smooth.


Let the icing stand at room temperature, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes or a little longer until the icing barely begins to thicken.


Then, stir it to mix, and pour it slowly over the top of the cake, pouring it onto the middle. Use a long, narrow metal spatula to smooth the top and spread the icing so that a little of it runs down the sides (not too much--the icing on the sides should be a much thinner layer than on the top). With a small, narrow metal spatula, smooth the sides.


Remove the strips of paper by pulling each one out toward a narrow end.


(Note: I use Medaglia D'Oro instant espresso.)


Optional:

Chocolate curls or chocolate shavings

Whipped cream

Fresh raspberries

Decorate the cake or individual portions with optional chocolate curls or chocolate shavings (try chocolate shavings formed with a vegetable parer and made with milk chocolate). Place a mound of optional whipped cream (lightly sweetened with confectioners sugar and lightly flavored with vanilla extract) on one side of each portion on individual dessert plates, and a few optional raspberries on the other side of each portion.


ah-jefu - cute pig decoration

[rapunzel283]

Fried rice, Yen style. (Yen is me O_O. Basically it means whatever I like .)

<3 I love my big wok.


Cheese and vegetable mini-muffins.

They taste better than they look, I promise T_^


I also made lasagne, but the photos' colour was all wonky (camera phone ).

[ah-jefu]

WOW. Where did you get that wok!!? It looks AMAZING. Now I would like to buy one for my dad. =) Do you still remember where you bought it?

[webmagine]

Flourless chocolate cupcakes with chocolate buttercream

mmmm!!

That looks so delicious!

*feeling hungry* =(

[rapunzel283]

^ Please don't quote pics ... >_<v

WOW. Where did you get that wok!!? It looks AMAZING. Now I would like to buy one for my dad. =) Do you still remember where you bought it?

^ .
I (my mum) bought it in VietNam T_^.
Maybe... try your local Asian grocery?
It's frakking awesome though, I have to say.
It's VERY annoying to clean though. It hardly fits in my sink!

[ah-jefu]

I love the style of your wok!! SO MUCH.. The handles esp. =) too bad the only ones I find are the onew with actual handles. =( YOURS IS SO COOL =x

[x0ny]

I didn't know this place existed...so I'll share pictures of stuff I cook from now on, these are some past stuff.


Seasoned Baked Potatoes and Salmon


Steak and Smoked Salmon


Rosted Coconut Pecan Meatloaf w/ white chocolate filling (taste better than you think)


Sugar Coated Tomato w/ Lychee wine marinated dice pineapple and ring


First attempt at Korokke...

More to come..

[rapunzel283]

^ Wow, all your dishes looks so exotic, especially the 'Sugar Coated Tomato w/ Lychee wine marinated dice pineapple and ring' !


Viet salad (goi) with nuoc mam...

I started eating before I remembered to take a photo ._.

[bubblepeach]

Cheese and vegetable mini-muffins.
http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/7684/image000em1.jpg

That looks REALLY GOOD TT_______TT
Can I know the recipes please?

[cbxjenn]

rice stir fried with a lot of gochujang and some veggies.


made the rice burnt and crunchy, just the way i like it

[T0fu^.^]

This is wat i made...best thing i could do besides fried rice...lol..it's shrimp mixed in batter spesholy made for shrimps n bananas..w/ onions...i kinda screwed up the batter so it's a bit runny which made it crunchier..=]

[c a t h e r s]

asukaxD: can u tell me how you made the tomato and eggs? it looks sooooooo good. and...my mom is going to be in hong kong for THREE weeks so i have to cook for my dad every night so i have to vary it up every now and then XD...

[crackednut]

from a few days ago

banana muffins

[ilovetakeshi]

from a few days ago

banana muffins

Oo your banana muffins look cute and chubby
Could I have the recipe please?

[intoxicate.]

spinach ravioli with cheese lol ^^

[eliza bennet]

Yeah I would like to have the recipe for banana muffins too (they look yum)

I wonder if the person who posted a pic for eggplant dish. It looked delicious.

[crackednut]

heres the recipe for the banana muffins!
its actually a recipe for muffins, and then my book gives all these little variations you can do
so you could probably take the base recipe and give it your own personal twist



BASIC MUFFIN RECIPE

1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 beaten egg
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup cooking oil

PREHEAT oven to 400 degrees.

GREASE 2 1/2 inch muffin cups or line with paper bake cups; set aside.
In a medium mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
Make a well in the center of dry mixture and set aside.

IN another mixing bowl, combine eggs, milk, and oil. Add the egg mixture to the dry mixture (pour it into the well you made). Stir until just moistened (batter should be lumpy).

SPOON batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each two-thirds full. Bake for about 20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool in muffin cups on wire rack for 5 minutes. Remove from muffin cups. Serve warm.


BANANA
Prepare as above, except do not use paper cups. Reduce milk to 1/3 cup. Add 3/4 cup mashed bananas (and optional, 1/3 cup chopped nuts) to the batter.

BUTTERMILK
Prepare as above, except add 1/4 tsp baking soda to the DRY mixture and substitute buttermilk for the milk.

CHEESE
Prepare as above, except stir 1/2 cup cheese (your choice) into DRY mixture.

CRANBERRY
Prepare as above, except combine 1 cup coarsely chopped cranberries and 2 T additional sugar. Fold into batter.

OATMEAL
Prepare as above, except reduce flour to 1 1/3 cups and add 3/4 cup rolled oats to DRY mixture.

POPPY SEED
Prepare as above, except increase sugar to 1/2 cup and add 1 T poppy seed to DRY mixture.