Dark Chocolate Almond Shortcake

Normally people bake Strawberry Shortcakes. Due to my fridge has run out of strawberries, I modified the frosting and it became dark chocolate almond shortcake.

This is a birthday cake for my late mother...

Dark Chocolate Almond Shortcake
*makes a 6” x 2.5” round removable bottom cake pan

Shortcake is a sweet cake or biscuit (in the American sense: that is, a crumbly bread that has been leavened with baking powder or baking soda).
Shortcake is typically made with flour, sugar, baking powder or soda, salt, butter, milk or cream, and sometimes eggs. The dry ingredients are blended, and then the butter is cut in until the mixture resembles cornmeal. The liquid ingredients are then mixed in just until moistened, resulting in a shortened dough. The dough is then dropped in spoonfuls onto a baking sheet, rolled and cut like baking powder biscuits, or poured into a cake pan, depending on how wet the dough is and the baker's preferences. Then it is baked at a relatively high temperature until set.

Ingredients:
Sponge cake
2 large eggs
60g caster sugar
60g low protein flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
20g melted unsalted butter

Syrup
10ml hot water
1/2 tbsp caster sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Cream
150g whipping cream
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Garnish
Dark chocolate powder (for decorating on top)
1/2 cup of chopped almond (half sprinkled in the whipped cream, half for decorating on top)

Method:
Sponge Cake

1. Add eggs in a mixing bowl, use a hand whisk, lightly mix well the eggs. 
2. Then add in caster sugar, and continue to lightly mix well with the eggs.
3. Continue to stir until caster sugar dissolved.
4. Use an electric mixer to continue whisking the mixture until turn pale to white. 
5. Sift in flour, separate into 3 stages, cut through the mixture with a wire whisk after each addition.
6. Pour the melted butter (cooled) over the batter and fold in using a spatula. 
7. Pour the cake batter into the cake pan, towards the end, pour batter to one side of the pan (to minimize forming a dome but mine still formed a slight dome...).
8. Lift the tin and drop it gently a few times onto the table to eliminate air bubbles.
9. Original recipe called for baking the cake at pre-heated oven at 170degC for 25 mins to 30 mins (place at middle rack). I use Philips AirFryer and baked at 170degC for 15 mins.

Syrup

1. Dissolved caster sugar with hot water, add vanilla extract and mix well. 
2. Set aside to cool down.

Cream

1. Add sugar, whipping cream and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl. 
2. Place the bowl over another bowl that is filled with ice water, whisk the whipping cream till soft peak. 
3. Store in the fridge before decorating.

Decorating

1. Once cake is done, cool it upside down on a wire rack. 
2. After cooled, slice it into half.
3. Brush some sugar syrup on the first layer, then spread a layer cream on top, sprinkle chopped almonds.
4. Brush another layer with sugar syrup, then place it on top of the first layer, spread the remaining cream, then sift the dark chocolate powder on top.
5. Sprinkle chopped almonds on top of the dark chocolate powder.
6. Chill the cake in fridge for hours before serve.

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Japanese Cheesecake with Philips AirFryer

This round I tried experimenting the Philips AirFryer with another of my favorite cheesecake. I followed exactly the ingredients and instructions in Christine's Recipe, except the baking temperature and baking time due to different oven used. They turned out to be fluffy and creamy as expected!!!

Before the first batch cooled down, 4 cupcakes already gone missing... I chilled and refrigerated all and today they taste even better!


Recipe makes around 28 mini cupcakes.
(I made 24 mini cupcakes + 1 small baking pan size block)

Ingredients:
250 ml milk
250 gm cream cheese, cubed and softened at room temperature
60 gm butter, softened at room temperature
6 egg yolks
55 gm cake flour
20 gm corn flour
1 lemon zest
6 egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
130 gm caster sugar

Tips: Make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature before you start.

Method:

**Preheat the Philips AirFryer to 150deg C for about 5 minutes.

1. Use a large bowl, pour in milk. Place the bowl over simmering water. Don’t let the bottom of the bowl touch the water. Add cream cheese, stir occasionally, until completely dissolved and the mixture turns smooth (double boil method).

2. Stir in butter, till dissolved. Remove from heat. 

3. Let cool down a bit, then add the egg yolks and combine well. (Note: Make sure the mixture is not too hot to avoid cooking the egg yolks at this stage.)

4. Combine cake flour and corn flour. Sift in the flours into the cream cheese mixture, a small amount at a time. Mix well between every addition, and make sure there aren’t any flour lumps. Stir in freshly grated zest. Set aside.

5. Place egg whites in a large clean bowl. (Note: Make sure there’s no oil or water in the bowl at all.) Use an electric mixer to beat the egg whites for 3 minutes, then add cream of tartar and blend again. Pour sugar in the egg whites and blend until very stiff peaks form. Use highest speed.

6. Fold-in the egg whites into the cream cheese mixture gently with a rubber spatula.

7. For a better result, fold in egg whites with a small amount at a time, at least for 3 times.

8. Fold-in just until all ingredients are incorporated. Do not stir or beat.  

Bake with pan

Pour the mixture into a small baking pan. I use a baking pan which can fit into the Philips AirFryer. I add hot water in the lower tray up to the level near the mesh metal basket (water-bath method). Bake for 15-20 minutes. Test with a needle or skewer that comes out clean. Slide out the basket and leave it 5 minutes. Remove the cake from the pan. Let it cool completely on a wire rack, then chill in the fridge for hours. I chilled overnight.

Baking into cupcakes

For the remaining mixture, I baked into small cupcakes. Test with a needle or skewer that comes out clean. Slide out the basket and leave it 5 minutes for each batch (one batch yields about 7 cupcakes). Cool completely on a wire rack, then chill in the fridge.

Side note:

Some of the cakes shrink a little due to rapid cooling for certain batch.. But overall the surface didn't crack. :)

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Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcakes with Philips AirFryer

*Scheduled post*

Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcakes 北海道戚风杯蛋糕

Obviously I've been missing in action from blogospheres for months due to my second pregnancy... And surprisingly my second girl in the tummy started triggering mommy to go back into kitchen for foodie experiments after the first trimester. She even 'urged' me to add some new tools and did I get this Philips HD9220/56 AirFryer with Rapid Air Technology during the special staff sales weeks ago at only RM699 (cheap right? =D)

So far I've experimented with chips, wedges and even dinner rolls (all succeeded but I was lazy to post). This round I am so eager to try baking the Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcakes. And I guess I'm the first one to do it with an airfryer, so it's solely trial and error haha~ I did a bit of adjustment on the temperature and baking time, basically lowering the temperature and also shortened the baking time (you can see from the pictures below to see the difference).

There are so many recipes available and shared around the blogospheres and on FB. You may Google it on your own as I didn't really follow exactly any one of them because I used Philips AirFryer instead of the conventional oven. Seriously I've never baked a cake using an oven before... but then at least I succeeded this first time baking mini chiffon cakes which can be considered soft and fluffy enough.

I didn't make the custard cream filling as well but just use some ready custard powder. No ready whipping cream available in my fridge so I just make use of whatever I can find in the kitchen. Indeed the taste was good after I chilled the cake overnight!


Recipe makes 12 mini cupcakes.

Ingredients:
For the cupcakes:
3 eggs, separated
50g caster sugar (separate into 2 portions of 25g each)
35g vegetable oil - I used canola oil
60g milk
70g cake flour, sifted

For the filling:
2 tablespoon of custard powder + 2 tablespoon of milk (mixed)
1 cup of milk
25g caster sugar

For finishing:
Fresh fruits (I use plum)
Icing sugar to dust

Tips: Make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature before you start.

Method (For the cupcakes):
1. Use hand whisk to whisk the egg yolks and sugar till pale in color. Whisk in canola oil and milk, mix well. Add sifted cake flour and whisk till the egg yolk mixture is smooth and well combined.
* I heated up the canola oil and milk before adding in to the mixture. Got the tips from Awayofmind Bakery House.

2. Instead of using the electronic mixer, I use hand whisk to whisk the egg whites and the sugar (I just come to realize that I lent my electronic mixer and yet to get it back.. ouch my hand!!). Whisk the egg whites until stiff peak.

3. Take 1/3 of the egg white mixture and add it to the egg yolk mixture. Mix until combined. 

4. Fold in the remaining egg white mixture to the egg yolk mixture. I did it in 3 rounds.

Method (For baking):
1. Preheat the Philips AirFryer at 170degC for 5 mins.
2. Fill up 3/4 of the cupcake linear. Bake in preheat oven at 170degC for 20 mins (I see some of the original recipe bake in 170degC for 20 mins, so I just tried if it works but it turned out to be overbaked...taste like normal cupcake which is harder in texture.)
3. The second batch I switched the setting to 150degC for 15 mins.
4. At 10 mins I started to monitor the cupcakes by sliding out the basket and check the appearance. I poked a chopstick into the middle to check. It seemed to be almost done at 12 mins! Somehow I lowered the temperature to 120degC and left them baking for another 3 mins until the timer is up.
5. Leave cake to cool down completely before piping in the filling.

Method (For the filling):
1. I used ready custard powder and follow the instructions to make the mixture.
2. Heat 1 cup of milk and add 25g of caster sugar. Bring to boil.

3. Lower the heat to medium, then add in the custard mixture and stir till it thickens.

4. Set aside and let it cool down before fill up to the pipe.

Finally....

Make a hole on the cupcake (I already poked a hole when checking them out in the oven) and pipe in the custard filling. Last but not least, dust them with icing sugar and garnish with fruit (I used plum).

Chill in the fridge (I chilled overnight) and ready to serve!!

Tadaaa~ My first attempt of chiffon cakes. Although I know that they're not the softest nor fluffiest but still they taste great!!

Chilled Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcakes ready to serve~

Happy trying if you have a Philips AirFryer too!

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