.... to get started seriously!
I really miss baking and decorating cakes! Honestly, whenever I see the cakes I made in Melbourne, I'm sad. It feels like something precious is snatched away from you. Something is just not quite right. I dislike that feeling. Really. So I've promised myself that I'll get baking seriously.
Thank you to those who have been faithfully supporting me, be it kind encouraging words, (possible) cake orders, photography & driving skills ;), enthusiasm in devouring my cakes (both the yummy and the not-so-yummy ones), criticism and advices, and even teaching to bake opportunity. You know who you are. And to me, and of course bakingbee, you are very precious.
Stay tuned! I've prepared a special cake project for mid-March. It's for real! Unlike last year's Christmas Project which I failed to deliver because of time constraint. :( Apologies to you who were waiting for it. Hopefully I'll get to do it this year.
OH OH !!! and now that i've got a proper internet connection at home, updating my blog should not be a major problem anymore!! WHEEEE !!!!! ^^v
xoxo
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Return of the Cupcakes
Dear all,
My baking journey in Indo has been up and down since the beginning of the year. There were good days where my cakes raised to perfection (trust me, nothing beats the feeling of it!!), and there were also days where they turned out to be utterly miserable. I have to adjust my recipes to suit the baking condition here at home. The humidity, quirks of my ovens, and the different ingredients, mainly the flour, the eggs, the sugar, and butter (butter is oh so expensive here!) make all the difference in my cakes. You see, most of the Indonesian recipes use margarine instead of butter, but when i substituted butter with margarine, i get all sorts of funny taste and smell from my cakes! There is this very famous Indonesian margarine brand that smells so funny when it’s being baked to the point that my usually very fragrant banana cake gives out sour aroma from the oven. HAH! Figure that out! I haven’t found a good brand of margarine that can be used for every recipe that I have hitherto compiled. Anyway, after several successful and not-so-successful attempts at various recipes, I’ve finally braced myself to baking cupcakes (again).
I made Red Velvet and Matcha cupcakes yesterday. Those two were the favourites along with my cookies and cream cupcakes. The red velvet were not as red since I used different brand of red colourings (i used to use Wilton’s, they’re good!) The cupcake wrappers were a bit too small too. I can’t find the usual cupcake wrappers here at home! Arghhh.. they’re all not the sizes i want. The mixture itself, were not as thick as it were back in Melbourne. And the cake is not as moist either. Julie!! I need you to taste my red velvet cos you’re the red velvet expert! Oh!! You know what!! Indo’s icing sugar is super duper sweet! I have to halve the sugar content in the icing, and even with that, those who tasted them last nite still complaint that they were a tad bit too sweet.
Surprisingly, the Matcha turned out to be a hit! Everyone says that the green tea one is nicer than the red velvet. In my humble opinion, though the chocolate tastes very very yummy, it overpowered a hint of tea flavour in the cake itself. And yes, the matcha icing is a bit too sweet. I was scared that it would leave a very bitter after taste, so i added in a little more sugar (and for your information, that’s already half of the original recipe. Thanks to indo’s super sweet icing sugar, my recipes are all messed up!)
The matcha is very special too because the Japanese green tea powder is imported from Melbourne (thank you dear cousin for your kind favour). Those of you who think that the green tea icing is a bit sandy, it’s because of the green tea powder. I didn’t use artificial green tea essence for it. Nor did I use any added chemicals/ cake emulsifiers such as TBM, VX or ovalet for ANY of my cakes. Only premium ingredients are chosen for bakingbee’s cakes. I always do my best to bake cakes that are as natural as possible.
These cupcakes are dedicated to my dear friends back in Melbourne who have been very supportive in testing my cupcakes and giving out comments and suggestions. They’re not as pretty or as yummy (in the case of the red velvet) as the ones back in Melbourne, but i will continue my quest for the perfect cupcakes.
Ciao!
XOXO
PS. new photos will follow shortly.
My baking journey in Indo has been up and down since the beginning of the year. There were good days where my cakes raised to perfection (trust me, nothing beats the feeling of it!!), and there were also days where they turned out to be utterly miserable. I have to adjust my recipes to suit the baking condition here at home. The humidity, quirks of my ovens, and the different ingredients, mainly the flour, the eggs, the sugar, and butter (butter is oh so expensive here!) make all the difference in my cakes. You see, most of the Indonesian recipes use margarine instead of butter, but when i substituted butter with margarine, i get all sorts of funny taste and smell from my cakes! There is this very famous Indonesian margarine brand that smells so funny when it’s being baked to the point that my usually very fragrant banana cake gives out sour aroma from the oven. HAH! Figure that out! I haven’t found a good brand of margarine that can be used for every recipe that I have hitherto compiled. Anyway, after several successful and not-so-successful attempts at various recipes, I’ve finally braced myself to baking cupcakes (again).
I made Red Velvet and Matcha cupcakes yesterday. Those two were the favourites along with my cookies and cream cupcakes. The red velvet were not as red since I used different brand of red colourings (i used to use Wilton’s, they’re good!) The cupcake wrappers were a bit too small too. I can’t find the usual cupcake wrappers here at home! Arghhh.. they’re all not the sizes i want. The mixture itself, were not as thick as it were back in Melbourne. And the cake is not as moist either. Julie!! I need you to taste my red velvet cos you’re the red velvet expert! Oh!! You know what!! Indo’s icing sugar is super duper sweet! I have to halve the sugar content in the icing, and even with that, those who tasted them last nite still complaint that they were a tad bit too sweet.
Surprisingly, the Matcha turned out to be a hit! Everyone says that the green tea one is nicer than the red velvet. In my humble opinion, though the chocolate tastes very very yummy, it overpowered a hint of tea flavour in the cake itself. And yes, the matcha icing is a bit too sweet. I was scared that it would leave a very bitter after taste, so i added in a little more sugar (and for your information, that’s already half of the original recipe. Thanks to indo’s super sweet icing sugar, my recipes are all messed up!)
The matcha is very special too because the Japanese green tea powder is imported from Melbourne (thank you dear cousin for your kind favour). Those of you who think that the green tea icing is a bit sandy, it’s because of the green tea powder. I didn’t use artificial green tea essence for it. Nor did I use any added chemicals/ cake emulsifiers such as TBM, VX or ovalet for ANY of my cakes. Only premium ingredients are chosen for bakingbee’s cakes. I always do my best to bake cakes that are as natural as possible.
These cupcakes are dedicated to my dear friends back in Melbourne who have been very supportive in testing my cupcakes and giving out comments and suggestions. They’re not as pretty or as yummy (in the case of the red velvet) as the ones back in Melbourne, but i will continue my quest for the perfect cupcakes.
Ciao!
XOXO
PS. new photos will follow shortly.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Bee on a lemon cake
Apologies to the related parties, this post has been very long overdue. I made this cake 10 days before i left Melbourne. Back then i didn’t have time to write about it because i have to pack my things up and also because the photos are in my brother’s camera. I have been pestering him for it, and yet up to this very moment, he still hasn’t given me that very file!! See, procrastination isn’t always a good thing.
Anyway, this cake was especially made for Vivienne, a.k.a. Madam Ho. We both are birthday twins and earlier last year, she told me that i must bake her birthday cake before i leave Melbourne for good. Initially, she requested lemony cake for her birthday party. It could be lemon tart, lemon pie, lemon cake, whatever, as long as it’s lemony cos lemony dessert is her favourite. Since I’ve never made lemon tart/ pie before, I settled for lemon cake. The trial cake which I turned into my “little miss sunshine” cupcakes, was a success. I wasn’t quite sure of what decoration to put on the cake. But i was thinking that lemony cake should be in the colour of yellow and yellow would be nice with white and pastel green. So I proposed a yellow cake with white daisies and mickey-eared-bees on top of it to Madam. She was sooo excited to hear the plan and told me that daisies are actually her favourite flower. Wheeeee ^^v.
This cute cake was not a trouble to make. In fact, the cake rose to perfection and I was so happy to see how it turned out. The cake was quite tall and was golden yellow in colour. Pretty pretty base cake. ^^v
Madam was very happy to see the cake. It was a pity that I couldn’t come to her birthday party as it was during my graduation ceremony. I heard that the guests loved the cake, appearance-wise and taste-wise. Happy Birthday, Madam! Thanks for trusting me to bake your birthday cake and also for being a great blessing to many of us! May the Lord continue to be your #1 in everything you do. XOXO
Friday, January 22, 2010
Journey to the Past
Long long time ago, before aviation came to existence, before electricity was invented, men sailed the fierce oceans to do the trading. One of their destinations was the islands in the Equator, which later on became what is now known as Indonesia. This land was so rich, a land flowing with milk and honey. :P No la! Those islands were rich with spices, such as cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Among the seafarers were the Dutch, who were crazily in love with the spices. Anyway, to cut long story short, in the end, the Dutch colonialised Indonesia for 350 years. (I was actually trying to remember my primary school History subject, but to no avail. So, if you are still interested in the story of Dutch Colonialisation, please Google it or Wikipedia it for more accurate History.)
This super long colonialisation era brought about culture assimilation between the Dutch and the Natives. One of the very obvious things is food! Whee.. ^^v. I believe that the “Dutch food” I’ve tasted here is slightly different from the original ones. For instance, I tried baking Ontbijtkoek (Dutch Spiced Cake) last night. The “tempo doeloe” recipes that I had, use 10 eggs! (Wow, I made history yesterday! I’ve never baked a cake with so many eggs before! ) Anyway, the cake turned out to be very light and fluffy, which is what I’ve known so far. Then I went to Google the correct spelling of the cake for I want to update my bakingbee facebook page. To my surprise the original Ontbijtkoek is a variety of spiced bread!!!! BREAD!!! Dense and heavy bread with Rye as one of the most important main ingredients along with spices. In the Netherland, it is served with thick butter to replace toast for breakfast. My oh my!
So what I baked yesterday is the Indonesian version of the Ontbijtkoek because it is so light and fluffy, and eggy! I still don’t understand why Indos really love cakes with so many eggs used in the making. It’s true that you get a very fluffy and fragrant cake, but it’s not like eating a cake! Haha..I myself prefer the English tea cake, but then, that’s probably because I grew up eating my grandmother’s “tempo doeloe” cakes, heavy dense cakes that can fill your tummy up when you’re hungry.
This version of Ontbijtkoek, is not seriously not bad. But I think, the spices are not fragrant enough! So next time, I will put more spices in.
Enjoy!!
This super long colonialisation era brought about culture assimilation between the Dutch and the Natives. One of the very obvious things is food! Whee.. ^^v. I believe that the “Dutch food” I’ve tasted here is slightly different from the original ones. For instance, I tried baking Ontbijtkoek (Dutch Spiced Cake) last night. The “tempo doeloe” recipes that I had, use 10 eggs! (Wow, I made history yesterday! I’ve never baked a cake with so many eggs before! ) Anyway, the cake turned out to be very light and fluffy, which is what I’ve known so far. Then I went to Google the correct spelling of the cake for I want to update my bakingbee facebook page. To my surprise the original Ontbijtkoek is a variety of spiced bread!!!! BREAD!!! Dense and heavy bread with Rye as one of the most important main ingredients along with spices. In the Netherland, it is served with thick butter to replace toast for breakfast. My oh my!
So what I baked yesterday is the Indonesian version of the Ontbijtkoek because it is so light and fluffy, and eggy! I still don’t understand why Indos really love cakes with so many eggs used in the making. It’s true that you get a very fluffy and fragrant cake, but it’s not like eating a cake! Haha..I myself prefer the English tea cake, but then, that’s probably because I grew up eating my grandmother’s “tempo doeloe” cakes, heavy dense cakes that can fill your tummy up when you’re hungry.
This version of Ontbijtkoek, is not seriously not bad. But I think, the spices are not fragrant enough! So next time, I will put more spices in.
Enjoy!!
Saturday, January 16, 2010
marble cake v.1
When it comes to cakes and desserts, you can’t really judge them by their outer appearances alone. Throughout my life, I have tried countless of sweets that looked absolutely pretty, but tasted so blah! Unfortunately, this first marble cake I baked in Solo is one of them. When it first came out of the oven, I told my mom that the cake was looking good, so I was hoping that it would taste as good. To my surprise, it was very very bland! The sugar is somehow not worthy to be called sugar for it didn’t add any sweetness to my cake whatsoever. Such a shame! 1 kg of Indonesian sugar is now more expensive than that of Melbourne and yet, it fails to deliver its purpose! To make matter even worse, the cake, even though is not dry, is very hard to swallow. *sigh......*
Trial #2 is therefore an EPIC FAILURE !!!
Never fear, I don’t give up that easily. *roll up sleeves... ready to work hard*
Stay tuned for more updates! :)
Trial #2 is therefore an EPIC FAILURE !!!
Never fear, I don’t give up that easily. *roll up sleeves... ready to work hard*
Stay tuned for more updates! :)
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
First Cake of the Year
My first week in Solo has been..... a tiny bit miserable. :( I got a big ulcer on my throat when I left Singapore. After 5 painful days, that ulcer was finally healing. But my joy suddenly disappears when I found another ulcer cropping up on the other side of my throat!!!!! Argghhh... The second ulcer turned out to be more bad-tempered than its sibling. It caused me fever and practically drained my energy away. Thank God for Panadol, I was able to survive the day. Haha.. ;)
So last night, after being nagged by my boyfriend for days, I finally went to see the doctor. He gave me antibiotics (the first dose after soooo many years) which work marvellously! Wheee ^^v. The ulcer is not painful anymore. I am able to swallow easily and most importantly, I’m not feeling lethargic anymore. Such is the wonder of antibiotics.
Oh, and I miss baking so much!! So yesterday, despite the war I had with the ulcer, I forced myself to bake something. Cinnamon banana bread. My all time favourite cake to start bakingbee’s R&D phase in Solo. : Result is not disappointing. But it is totally different from what I used to make in Melbourne. Different ingredients, different humidity, different oven make all the difference in the outcome of a cake. The one I made yesterday is still fluffy and moist. But it is chewier than the usual one. Nevertheless, it’s not bad for a first try in a completely new environment.
So last night, after being nagged by my boyfriend for days, I finally went to see the doctor. He gave me antibiotics (the first dose after soooo many years) which work marvellously! Wheee ^^v. The ulcer is not painful anymore. I am able to swallow easily and most importantly, I’m not feeling lethargic anymore. Such is the wonder of antibiotics.
Oh, and I miss baking so much!! So yesterday, despite the war I had with the ulcer, I forced myself to bake something. Cinnamon banana bread. My all time favourite cake to start bakingbee’s R&D phase in Solo. : Result is not disappointing. But it is totally different from what I used to make in Melbourne. Different ingredients, different humidity, different oven make all the difference in the outcome of a cake. The one I made yesterday is still fluffy and moist. But it is chewier than the usual one. Nevertheless, it’s not bad for a first try in a completely new environment.
Cinnamon Banana Cake
Stay tuned!! More to come, peeps!!Friday, January 1, 2010
Adieu 2009 !
In less than an hour, 2009 will come to an end. As a concluding remark of the year, I would like to share with you what i've been through this year. This is going to be a long post, but I believe, it is worth written and read. Buckle up!
My life thus far....
I started of 2009 back in Indo while having a long 3 months summer holiday. That was my first long summer holiday as I had been taking summer courses for the past 3 years. Early in the year, I somehow had a feeling that this year is going to be tough for me in terms of my spiritual walk with God. I felt that this year was going to be a year of trials for the Lord had grown me in such a way that I never imagined over the past years. After the Chinese New Yea, I was told by one of my relatives that the year of the Ox will bring major bad luck to me, and thus I should be carrying this little charm around to repel all the bad energy or whatever. Of course I don't want to carry that. By all means, i don't disrespect the one who gave me that charm. I threw the charm away because I don't believe in that sort of thing and because I have faith in my God. My God who created Heaven and Earth, who stepped down into time and died to save me from the miry clay. My God who conquered death. My God in whom I solely put my trust. I know He is bigger than anything, I know He takes care of me. I know that if any trouble were to befall me, it is all within His beautiful plans for me and I know He holds me in His mighty hand. Therefore, I do not fear anything for I know I am in safe hands.
2009 is my fifth and final uni year. After four years of hard work at uni, I finally realised that I don't like lab work and researh. I hate that whole-heartedly. I loved learning the stuff I learned in my Science course. Pathology and Physiology is very interesting. Learning human body in closed details had helped me admire my God even more. He truly designs us so wonderfully. Strand by strand, He knitted us together in our mothers' wombs. Science is fascinating!
On the other hand, I found out that Commerce isn't really that bad after all. Being a naive and overly idealistic little girl, I used to think that business is really not my thing. When I was in my teens, I never thought I would be a business woman, an entrepreneur or whatever that is related to business world. I did whatever I could in my capacity to stay away from the business world. It's funny how over the years, as we grow, our perspective changes. I'm not so skeptical about conducting business anymore because I learnt that I can also conduct a business in such a way that honours God.
Contrary to what I was told, 2009 has been a good year for me. Some of the main reasons are:
1. My loved ones.
Family and friends. I can't stop thanking God for giving me awesome family and friends who are always there to support me. I wouldn't be who I am today without them. My inner circle of friends are unusual people. But I am proud to have them as my close friends. I love them to bits and I wouldn't trade them for anything. I thank God for placing me in the midst of these people for through them, I get to exercise Grace and Mercy. I learn to be more understanding, accepting, loving and forgiving. I learnt to serve others, to be patient and to be empathetic. To be kind and not judging. To be humble but still respect and appreciate myself . To be firm and to be able to say no when it is time to say no. I've found friends worth keeping for all eternity. And for that, I am forever grateful.
I thank God for my boyfriend too. He has been my great supporter. A companion who believes in me and loves me for what I am. Someone who shares my dream and helps me to reach it. Someone who makes me want to be a better person. I love you!
2. bakingbee
bakingbee is really a surprise for me. I never thought I would be doing something like this. Thank you everyone for always believing in me. Thank you for being my supporters and standing behind me to give me motivation and moral support. Really appreciate it. Thank you for all the inputs and critics. You know who you are and I owe you big time. I also can't thank God enough for bakingbee. I guess He is the one who planned bakingbee for me. Thank you for the inspirations and gifts. Without you, bakingbee wouldn't exist in the first place. I hope bakingbee has put a smile on Your face. I hope bakingbee will help to make You even more famous. I hope bakingbee will continue to be an extension of Your Love, Grace and Mercy. bakingbee is all Yours. Do unto it whatever pleases You.
3. Graduation
Yes. I have graduated with a B.Sc/ B.Com. It's nothing compared to some other people who have a series of degree. But still, I'm very grateful for my graduation. These past 7 years in Melbourne, I have really tasted God's goodness, faithfulness, mercy and grace. Now that it's time to go back home, I am deeply saddened for Melbourne has been my home away from home. I practically spend my adult life so far in Melbourne. My friends, my church, everything is back in Melbourne. Stepping away from Melbourne will be tough I reckon. Thank God for internet and blackberry! hahaha.. ;)
So yeah, it's officially 2010 now. I pray that the Lord who have gone before us will continue to shine His face upon us and to guide us through the year. May He continue to bless us all so that we can be blessings to others. May 2010 be a year where the Lord will be glorified in every aspect of our lives. Let us step into this new year together with Him. Let us fix our eyes upon Jesus so that we won't stray away from Him and His beautiful plan fo us.
Have a blessed new year !
My life thus far....
I started of 2009 back in Indo while having a long 3 months summer holiday. That was my first long summer holiday as I had been taking summer courses for the past 3 years. Early in the year, I somehow had a feeling that this year is going to be tough for me in terms of my spiritual walk with God. I felt that this year was going to be a year of trials for the Lord had grown me in such a way that I never imagined over the past years. After the Chinese New Yea, I was told by one of my relatives that the year of the Ox will bring major bad luck to me, and thus I should be carrying this little charm around to repel all the bad energy or whatever. Of course I don't want to carry that. By all means, i don't disrespect the one who gave me that charm. I threw the charm away because I don't believe in that sort of thing and because I have faith in my God. My God who created Heaven and Earth, who stepped down into time and died to save me from the miry clay. My God who conquered death. My God in whom I solely put my trust. I know He is bigger than anything, I know He takes care of me. I know that if any trouble were to befall me, it is all within His beautiful plans for me and I know He holds me in His mighty hand. Therefore, I do not fear anything for I know I am in safe hands.
2009 is my fifth and final uni year. After four years of hard work at uni, I finally realised that I don't like lab work and researh. I hate that whole-heartedly. I loved learning the stuff I learned in my Science course. Pathology and Physiology is very interesting. Learning human body in closed details had helped me admire my God even more. He truly designs us so wonderfully. Strand by strand, He knitted us together in our mothers' wombs. Science is fascinating!
On the other hand, I found out that Commerce isn't really that bad after all. Being a naive and overly idealistic little girl, I used to think that business is really not my thing. When I was in my teens, I never thought I would be a business woman, an entrepreneur or whatever that is related to business world. I did whatever I could in my capacity to stay away from the business world. It's funny how over the years, as we grow, our perspective changes. I'm not so skeptical about conducting business anymore because I learnt that I can also conduct a business in such a way that honours God.
Contrary to what I was told, 2009 has been a good year for me. Some of the main reasons are:
1. My loved ones.
Family and friends. I can't stop thanking God for giving me awesome family and friends who are always there to support me. I wouldn't be who I am today without them. My inner circle of friends are unusual people. But I am proud to have them as my close friends. I love them to bits and I wouldn't trade them for anything. I thank God for placing me in the midst of these people for through them, I get to exercise Grace and Mercy. I learn to be more understanding, accepting, loving and forgiving. I learnt to serve others, to be patient and to be empathetic. To be kind and not judging. To be humble but still respect and appreciate myself . To be firm and to be able to say no when it is time to say no. I've found friends worth keeping for all eternity. And for that, I am forever grateful.
I thank God for my boyfriend too. He has been my great supporter. A companion who believes in me and loves me for what I am. Someone who shares my dream and helps me to reach it. Someone who makes me want to be a better person. I love you!
2. bakingbee
bakingbee is really a surprise for me. I never thought I would be doing something like this. Thank you everyone for always believing in me. Thank you for being my supporters and standing behind me to give me motivation and moral support. Really appreciate it. Thank you for all the inputs and critics. You know who you are and I owe you big time. I also can't thank God enough for bakingbee. I guess He is the one who planned bakingbee for me. Thank you for the inspirations and gifts. Without you, bakingbee wouldn't exist in the first place. I hope bakingbee has put a smile on Your face. I hope bakingbee will help to make You even more famous. I hope bakingbee will continue to be an extension of Your Love, Grace and Mercy. bakingbee is all Yours. Do unto it whatever pleases You.
3. Graduation
Yes. I have graduated with a B.Sc/ B.Com. It's nothing compared to some other people who have a series of degree. But still, I'm very grateful for my graduation. These past 7 years in Melbourne, I have really tasted God's goodness, faithfulness, mercy and grace. Now that it's time to go back home, I am deeply saddened for Melbourne has been my home away from home. I practically spend my adult life so far in Melbourne. My friends, my church, everything is back in Melbourne. Stepping away from Melbourne will be tough I reckon. Thank God for internet and blackberry! hahaha.. ;)
So yeah, it's officially 2010 now. I pray that the Lord who have gone before us will continue to shine His face upon us and to guide us through the year. May He continue to bless us all so that we can be blessings to others. May 2010 be a year where the Lord will be glorified in every aspect of our lives. Let us step into this new year together with Him. Let us fix our eyes upon Jesus so that we won't stray away from Him and His beautiful plan fo us.
Have a blessed new year !
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