Daring Bakers - Crostata

I feel guilty..  Guilty for having the Daring Bakers logo on my blog but I haven't done one challenge since I don't know when.. Time have caught up with me and I shall make it a point to be a loyal member again.. ;) And now, I am a happy baker once more!!

I've made tarts before this. This recipe was so much easier to handle than my previous experience, which was good. As the weather at my place can be quite humid, tart dough tends to be sticky. However, this recipe was easy to handle which made me really happy.

The made the pasta without using any machines. It was the first time I did that and I am so happy and proud of the results. :) Of course you can do the pasta frolla using a food processer which is much easier. But unfortunately, I have not got any food processor and decided to use my hands instead of my KitchenAid. I think it was easy to do it without any machines and there's lesser things to wash! haha.. It's more satisfying, trust me..

In terms of taste, the pasta frolla had a mild sweet taste but it was buttery. But it's okay to me cos I filled mine with pastry cream which was sweet and the glazed fruits made it sweet too. So the tart did not add much more sweetness. So it's just lovely for me. Definitely, my go-to pie crust recipe next time.

I made mini tarts using some leftover strawberries, some baked with pastry cream and some with Lingonberry Jam. The strawberry tarts were delightful. I feel that lingonberry jam in itself is an acquired taste. It has a sharp tang (tartiness) taste. But luckily the pastry cream kinda neutralize it. I can take a few bites of it but not more than that. I think lingonberry taste better with savoury food like steak. The pastry cream didn't look that successful but taste quite good. It kinda bloated up in the oven, then sank a lot when it was cooling down outside. 

But overall, this was a good challenge. I love the recipe and loved all of it. :) For more information on the recipe alternative method, you can click here.   

The 2010 November Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Simona of briciole. She chose to challenge Daring Bakers’ to make pasta frolla for a crostata. She used her own experience as a source, as well as information from Pellegrino Artusi’s Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well.

Crostata di Frutta Fresca
Pasta Frolla
1/2 cup minus 1 tbsp (100 g) superfine sugar (caster) OR a scant 3/4 cup (90g) of powdered sugar
1 3/4 cup [420 ml, 235 g, 8 1/4 oz.] unbleached all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt
1 stick [8 tablespoons / 4 oz. / 115 g] cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Zest of half a lemon
1 large egg and 1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten in a small bowl

1. Whisk together sugar, flour and salt in a bowl.

2. Rub or cut the butter into the flour until the mixture has the consistency of coarse crumbs. You can do this in the bowl or on your work surface, using your fingertips or an implement of choice.

3. Make a well in the center of the mounded flour and butter mixture and pour the beaten eggs into it (reserve about a teaspoon of the egg mixture for glazing purposes later on – place in the refrigerator, covered, until ready to use).

4. Add the lemon zest to your flour/butter/egg mixture.

5. Use a fork to incorporate the liquid into the solid ingredients, and then use your fingertips.

6. Knead lightly just until the dough comes together into a ball.

7. Shape the dough into a flat disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Place the dough in the refrigerator and chill for at least two hours. You can refrigerate the dough overnight.

Pastry Cream (taken from Baking from my Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan)
2 cups whole milk
6 large egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch, sifted
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 1/2 (50.2g) unsalted butter, cut into b its at room temperature

1. Bring milk to a boil in a small saucepan

2. Meanwhile, in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan, whisk the yolks together with sugar and cornstarch until thick and well blended.

3. Still whisking, drizzle in about 1/4 cup of the hot milk - this will temper, or warm, the yolks so they won't  curdle.

4. Whisking all the while, slowly pour in the remainder of the milk.

5. Put the pan over medium heat and whisking vigorously, constantly and thoroughly (making sure to get into the edges of the pot), bring the mixture to a boil.

6. Keep at a boil, still whisking for 1 to 2 minutes, then remove the pan from the heat.

7. Whisk in the vanilla extract. Let sit for 5 minutes, then whisk in the bits of butter, stirring until they are fully incorporated and the pastry cream is smooth and silky.

8. Scrape the cream into a bowl. Put the bowl into a larger bowl filled with ice cubes and cold water and stir in the pastry cream occasionally until it is thoroughly chilled, about 20 minutes. OR

8a. Press a plastic wrap against the surface of the cream to create an airtight seal and refrigerate the pastry cream until cold. 

Building the  Crostata di Frutta Fresca
You will need:
A layer of pasta frolla base
A layer of pastry cream
A layer of fresf fruits

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF [180ºC/gas mark 4].

2. Roll out a batch of the pasta frolla and cover the base of the tart pan. (I took out the pasta frolla from the fridge and left it to warm up a little bit for easier rolling. Put the pasta frolla in between 2 sheets of parchment paper and roll).

3. Cut a piece of parchment paper or aluminum foil large enough to cover the bottom of the crust and extend out a bit over the edges of the pan.

4. You can use pie weights or dry beans to blind bake. Place whatever weight you’re using directly on the parchment paper or aluminum foil in an even layer. (I used uncooked rice grains as that was all I have at home). 

5. Place the crostata shell in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. (The mini tarts took around 15min in my oven. Do not overbake as it results in very hard and crispy shells like mine. *grins* It's still edible though). 

6. Remove the weights and parchment paper and continue baking the crostata shell until the border is light golden, about 5 minutes (watch carefully to avoid over-baking, which results in a hard shell). In the absence of weight, the crust may rise in the middle: if that occurs, gently push it back down with the back of a spoon.

7. Remove from the oven and let the crostata shell cool completely before proceeding.

8. If you use a tart pan with removable bottom, release the base from the fluted tart ring, then slide the cooled crostata shell on a serving plate for filling. (Note: If you’ve used a cake pan or pie plate, use a bit of care in taking the shell out of the baking vessel.)

9. Spread the prepared pastry cream over the cooled shell.

10. Decorate the surface with fresh fruit. The crostata must be cool, but not cold, so if you refrigerate it, take it out of the fridge half an hour before serving. This crostata is best eaten the same day it is prepared.

11. I warm a bit of glazing gel with some water to put as glaze on top of the fruits to make it last longer and look nicer. :)

~I'm counting  UFOs
I signal them with my lighter
And in this moment I am happy, Happy~

Strawberry Shortcake

I have like 2 bottles of mascarpone cheese in hand and I had to do something with it.. I bought it some time ago to make cheesecake but I have't done it because Im worried it won't taste nice and nobody's gonna eat it.. I know I'm paranoid.. The funny thing is, I bought it the first time and then I misplaced it and thought I didn't buy it.. After a few days, I bought it again and found the misplaced bottle.. -_- So loser right? ahaha.. That is why I have excess mascarpone cheese..

I've been wanting to make this Strawberry Shortcake recipe since the day I saw the strawberry shortcake at Rive Gauche and the Chantilly cake at Bread Talk.. Mentioning Rive Gauche will always remind me of Guanaja.. The best chocolate cake ever!!

So finally, I got around to making it this recipe that I've been wanting to make.. The recipe comes from a book I borrowed at the National Library.. The cake is sweet, soft, nice buuut... I can't really get used to the chantilly cream.. It smells and taste strongly of heavy cream.. too strong.. Maybe I could put more cheese.. I don't know.. But it does not taste that bad when eaten with the sponge cake and strawberries.. It's lovely actually.. But I do wish I could find a better cream recipe.. Oh yeah.. I was too lazy to decorate either.. :)

Strawberry Shortcake (taken from Just Desserts and Other Baked Treats by Daniel Tay)
(makes one 20cm/8 inch cake)

1 kg Strawberries, cleaned, hulled and sliced (I used around 250g without any decorations though)

Genoise Sponge
110g/4oz egg yolks
175g/6 1/5oz eggs
170g/6oz sugar
110g/4oz light cake flour, sifted
55g/2oz unsalted butter, melted

Chantilly Cream
1ltr/32 fl oz/4 cups whipping cream (I used heavy cream)
100g/3 1/2oz sugar
100g/3 1/2oz mascarpone cheese

1. Preheat oven to 180C (350F) and line cake tin with wax paper.

2. Prepare genoise sponge. Combine egg yolks, eggs and sugar in a mixing bowl and whisk on high speed for 10 minutes. Reduce to medium speed and whisk for another 10 minutes or until fine air bubbles form.

3. Pour the batter into a lined 20cm (8 inch) round cake tin. Level batter with a spatula and bake for 20-25 minutes or until top of the cake is firm to touch. Remove from heat and leave aside to cool.

4. Unmould cake and remove paper. Peel skin off top of cake and discard. If not using immediately, cover with plastic wrap and freeze. Genoise sponge can keep for up to 6 weeks, frozen and 3 days, refrigerated.

5. Prepare chatilly cream. Combine cream, sugar and mascarpone cheese in a mixing bowl and whisk at medium speed for 3 minutes. Increase to high speed and continue to whisk until light and smooth. (Don't mix too long as the cream will curdle easily). Set aside.

Cake assembly
7. Horizontally slice genoise sponge into 2 equal layers. Place one layer on a cake board and place a 22.5cm (9in) cake ring over (I didn't use a cake ring cos the cake shrank and I didn't want to use to much cream all over..wished I had an 8 in cake ring). Spoon half of chantilly cream over a around sides of sponge cake layer and level with an angle palette knife. Arrange some strawberries on top of cream, then place second sponge layer over. Spoon remaining cream over and around sides of cake and level again. Refrigerate cake until slightly firm.

8. Gently ease cake ring from cake and remove. Coat sides of cake with ground almonds if desired. Decorate cake as desired and serve chilled.

~Let's make our world the most
beautiful home~

Strawberry Cupcakes

I have been delaying this post for quite a while now.. Been so busy and tired.. There's so much more recipes that I have yet tried.. Aaarrgghhhhh~ Haha..

I made these Strawberry cupcakes a while back.. on the first day of raya when I was sooo free.. I've been wanting to make it for quite long but I always do not have enough strawberries or I am not sure whether I should waste my strawberries on this.. Strawberries in Singapore are so expensive and I am so picky about getting pretty ones.. Haha.. If only all these fruits are grown locally.. It would be heaven for me...

These cupcakes are nice but I think the strawberry taste is too mild.. Maybe you can add a lil' of strawberry flavouring if you prefer a stronger starwberry taste.. But the recipe would do it for me.. It's not so sweet.. maybe cos the strawberries aren't sweet either.. However, the strawberries, will make the cake a bit moist.. So if you're looking for those dry texture.. this is not it.. Cos the finely chopped strawberries will make the cake moist at some parts.. Unless you used lesser chopped strawberries and substitute with flavouring or whatever not.. :) Also, it produces a nice flat cupcakes.

The blog where I took it from used Strawberry Meringue Buttercream but I was to lazy to do it and no one in this house likes frosting anyway.. Hence, i just used what I have.. My Buttercream Drem Icing.. But very little cos I think nobody would eat it if I put a dollop of it.. haha.. But kids seems to love it though.. Haha.. Sweet tooth.. Anyway, my purpose of it was to try out the cupcake recipe mainly..

Strawberry Cupcakes (taken from http://www.tasteandtellblog.com/ - makes 40-44 cupcakes)

(adapted from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes) (my notes in red - i did half batch and made 28 cupcakes using my Reynold muffin disposable aluminium tray)

2 3/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup cake flour (not self raising)

1 tbsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 1/4 cups sugar

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

3 large whole eggs, plus 1 egg white (2 eggs plus ~1 egg white for half batch)

1 cup milk

2 cups finely chopped strawberries, plus more for garnish

Strawberry Meringue Buttercream (recipe follows)

1. Preheat oven to 350F (~180C). Line standard cup muffin tins with paper liners.

2. Sift together the flours, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

3. Put butter, sugar vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer. Cream on medium-high until pale and fluffy. Add the whole eggs and egg white, one at a time, beating until each is fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

4. Change the speed to low, add the flour mixture in 2 batches, alternating with the milk. Beat until well combined. Fold in the strawberries by hand.

5. Fill each paper liner with batter 3/4 full (the batter does not rise that much. So nothing lesser than 3/4 full). Bake, rotating the pans half way through, until golden and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean, 20-30 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool for 15 minutes, then turn cupcakes out onto racks to let cool completely.

6. To finish, fill a pastry bag fitted with a large open star tip with the buttercream. Pipe the buttercream onto each cupcake, swirling tip and releasing as you pull up to form a peak. Just before serving top each cupcake with a thinly sliced strawberry. (I did mine with the open star tip and a small swirl and top it with a drop of strawberry jam to make it look pretty).

Strawberry Meringue Buttercream

from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes (my notes in red.. I haven't tried this but I made Swiss Meringue Buttercream before and here are my tips)

1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries (8 oz), rinsed, hulled and coarsely chopped

4 large eggs

1 1/4 cup sugar

1 1 /2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons, at room temperature (In our hot and humid weather in Singapore, please make sure the butter is not melting. I would put it a the fridge for a while after cutting it into small pcs.. melting butter or butter that is too soft would result in a failure!! I had to fail twice to learn that it is the butter's fault :(..was such a waste of food/ingredients... really)

1. Puree strawberries in a food processor.

2. Combine egg whites and sugar in the heatproof bowl of a standing electric mixer set over a pan of simmering water (My water is still boiling but at a very very low heat). Whisk constantly by hand until mixture is warm to the touch and sugar has dissolved (the mixture should feel completely smooth when rubbed between your fingerstips) (please test it with your fingertips, it may take a while to dissolve, approx. 3 min).

3. Attach the bowl to the mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Starting on low and gradually increasing to medium-high speed, mix until stiff (but not dry) peaks form. Continue mixing until mixture if fluffy and glossy, and completely cool (test by touching the bottom of the bowl) about 10 min.

4. With mixer on medium-low speed (by this time, I would have change to the paddle attachment), add the butter a few tablespoon at a time, mixing well after each addition. Once all butter has been added, scrape down sides of bowl with a flaxible spatula and switch to paddle attachment (those with no standing mixture, just carry on with the same whisk attachment, it would still work, trust me.. ). Continue beating on low until all air bubbles are eliminated, about 2 minutes. Add strawberries and beat until combined.

5. Stir with a flexible spatula until frosting is smooth. Keep buttercream at room temperature if using on the same day, or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate up to 3 days or freeze up to one month. Before using, bring to room temperature and beat with paddle attachment on low speed until smooth again, about 5 min.

** For a better explaination on how to make a successful swiss meringue buttercream, I relied on How to Eat a Cupcake's website..

~Kau takkan pernah tahu apa yang kau miliki

Hingga nanti.. Kau kehilangan..

Maka jangan pernah tinggalkan aku..

Oh Kekasih..~

American Whisked Sponge Cake

I've got good news!!! Finally I got my very own KitchenAid!!!!!!!!!!!! Hahaha.. I bought a purple one cause it was love at first sight.. Although I love Red, the purple one still caught my eye.... Im like so ecstatic.. It's like so cool.. And pretty standing there.. looking shy and purple.. Hmm.. *grinz*.. And because of that, I've been like baking almost every other day.. Too excited I guess...

I tried a new recipe that I found in a book the other day.. Called American Whisked Sponge Cake.. Decided to make it because I had ingredients on hand and I just felt like doing something new and interesting and it looked really simple..

Well, it's easy to make.. A bit dense but it's nice.. A simple desert.. and it definitely taste better chilled and it's not so messy when it's eaten chilled..

American Whisked Sponge Cake (taken from Cakes Galore by Valerie Barrett)

3 large eggs

100g caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp cream of tartar

100g plain flour, sifted

pinch of salt

300ml double cream

100g fresh stawberries

sifted icing sugar, for dusting

1. Preheat the oven to 180 deg cel/350 deg F/Gas Mark 4. Grease and base line two 20cm round sandwich cake tins.

2. Using a had-held electric mixer, whisk the egg yolks and 50g of the caster sugar together in a bowl until the mixture is pale and creamy. Whisk the vailla extract. Set aside.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites and cream of tartar together until they are stiff. Gradually whisk in the remaining caster sugar until the mixture is stiff and glossy. Sift the flour and salt over the egg yolk mixture and fold in with a quarter of the whisked egg whites. Fold in the remaining whisked egg whites.

4. Pour the mixture into the prepared tins, dividing it evenly. Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes, or until golden and the tops spring back when lightly pressed. Turn out onto a wire rack and leave to cool.

5. Whip the cream in a bowl to form soft peaks. Chop all but 1-2 strawberries. Sandwich the cakes together with the whipped cream and chopped strawberries. Dust the top of the cake with sifted icing sugar and decorate with small whole or halved strawberries.

Remarks: I made a 6 inch cake and halved all the ingredients.

~Here they come.. The beautiful ones

The Beautiful ones.. lalalala~

First Presentation

Presenting to you Strawberry Banana cupcake with Cream Cheese Frosting and One Bowl Chocolate Cupcakes with White Chocolate Frosting... I think they're one of the most prettiest cupcakes I made so far. And one of my best tasting too... Good cupcakes to make to "impress" people.. The first baking goods I brought over to his house.. hehe.. Do try..

Martha Stewart One Bowl Chocolate Cupcakes w White Chocolate Buttercream

3/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup warm water
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with liners; set aside. In a large mixing bowl, sift together cocoa, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the eggs, warm water, buttermilk, oil and vanilla; mix batter until smooth, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl to assure batter is well mixed. Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about one-third full. Bake until tops spring back when touched, about 20 minutes, rotating pan once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.

White Chocolate Buttercream

1/2 cup unsalted butter
6 oz white chocolate, melted and cooled slightly
A handful of mini chocolate chips
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

In a large bowl, beat the butter at medium speed until creamy. Beat in the melted white chocolate. Add the confectioners' sugar and vanilla and beat at low speed, scraping the sides and bottom of teh bowl, until light and fluffy. Drop some mini choc chips after frosting the cupcakes.

*If you prefer a thicker and stiffer buttercream, you may add more confectioners' sugar. But if would make the frosting ultra sweet. Alternatively, you may put the frosting in the refrigerator for about 15 min to make it a bit stiffer - this method would not need you to add more sugar to the frosting.

Strawberry Banana Cupcakes w Cream Cheese Frosting

3 cups flour
1 cup vanilla sugar (or regular caster sugar)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
grated zest of one lemon
2 bananas, mashed
1 cup chopped strawberries

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, stir the eggs and the oil. Add the bananas and lemon zest.

Add to the dry ingredients and beat just until combined. Spoon into cupcake papers, about 3/4 full and bake 25-30 min or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack and frost.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1/2 cup butter
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
2-3 cups of powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Beat butter until creamy. Add cream cheese and beat until even. Lastly, add powdered sugar and vanilla extract until light and fluffy.

The chocolate cupcakes are a guaranteed favourite - Soft and sweet and wonderful. It's simple to make and convenient too while the Strawberry Banana were more refreshing and lighter. Well.. So yeah.. :) Happy Belated New Year!!

~You spin me right round
baby right round.. like a record player
Right round, round round~