perth: the trailer

macau memories

earlier in march this year… :)

great times. :)

banana and walnut sponge I

the banana walnut sponge cake

… and its failed cousin, the banana sponge.

notes

• folding well and properly makes a really really big difference (as you can see in the picture of the failed cake) to a sponge cake. kind of duh to most people but apparently it wasn’t, to me. oops
• about 25 minutes was fine
• the walnuts don’t really get distributed well around the cake. must find a way to remedy this
• the cake is still slightly “kueh-ish” around the middle
• should flour the tray on top of buttering/greasing it
• the hand-whipped egg whites might not have been stiff enough

in future…

• consider baking at lower oven temperature (about 165°C or 170°C)
• flour the baking tray
• whip egg whites longer into slightly stiffer peaks?

how to whisk egg whites

this makes awesome reading:

How to Whisk Egg Whites

:) especially the last part.

pastry cream II: going bananas

notes

• decreased amount of milk used from 1 1/2 to 1 1/4 cups
• reduced the amount of cornstarch used, and increased flour used; 3 tbsps flour, 1 tbsp cornstarch
• works well with pureed bananas. :)
• amount of eggs were fine, actually.
• added 1 tsp of vanilla to taste

in future

• …try more flavours,
• and the cornstarch:flour ratio must test also!

egg tarts I

notes

• crust works. but very very troublesome when handling if want to keep maintaining the dough at a low temperature. have to find a new way to handle it — either be really fast, or keep it away from hands
• the salt added for the pastry dough is important!!
• custard tasted slightly cheesish to some — either the cream was left too long in the fridge and fermented partially (i hope not), or its just too much egg and cheese and overwhelming. o.O?
• custard was bubbling in the oven. explained by the fat in the cream boiling and ..making it all oily and not smooth.
• end result is quite quite rich. :\

in future…

• consider 1/2 cream 1/2 milk, or just simply milk + flour (find a good ratio)
• pastry dough was troublesome. just use hands and be fast? and use a larger food processor.
• trim edges so it looks more presentable. :p
• dust excess flour off the dough so end product isn’t too “floury”

a musing

man cannot live on hope forever without faith

orange scones with cheese II

notes

• orange peel works, but find the correct type of orange. haha maybe use SUNKIST instead of mandarin oranges… oops.
• adding one egg works
• add sugar if the flavour (orange) is sour
• processed cheese wont work too well — should really try using the block kind of cheese
• really bad error made was that twice the amount of milk was added. sheet.
• they taste nice with tea. :D

in future…

• don’t use mandarin oranges for the peel
• add about 1/2 cup milk (125 – 150ml) will do
• flavour not strong enough — add more peel? of two oranges maybe.

liquids and volumes

1. add liquids in small amounts to a solid mixture, never all at once and overwhelm it. mix well before continuing each step

2. volumes of juices DO add to the total liquid content. if do not want to modify flour content, take into account and reduce amounts of milk/water used

orange scones with cheese I

notes

• add milk slowly (don’t ever forget! — liquids must always be added to solid mixture bit by bit)
• remember that orange juice contributes to liquid content of the dough, so moderate the amount of milk down
• citric acid in orange juice might react with milk and coagulate it. use orange peel
• KRAFT sliced cheese melts too easily and browns too fast — before the scone is well-cooked on the inside

in future

• use less milk, if adding milk slowly doesn’t work?
• use orange peel – more taste, less liquid
• use more flour? since liquid content can be varied easily through milk, but flour content cannot.
• use a harder cheese and dice it maybe?
• look out for dough texture, has to be there!!
• add sugar for scones with walnuts or figs?
• add eggs?