~ Chocolate-Coated Strawberries

Made in a similar way as cake balls! One chocolate ganache to rule them all!

~ Chocolate-Coated Peanut Butter Cake Balls

To the leftover cake crumbs from the chocolate cake, add leftover ground almonds and enough peanut butter to hold its shape as balls. Dip balls in chocolate ganache and chill to set.

Fast isn't it? I particularly like the soft peanut butter balls inside as I'm almost addicted to peanut butter! The balls did not put me off like eating pure peanut butter on its own (greasy!!) due to the combination with cake crumbs, but took me some time to get used to the taste and texture. A great means to clear those excess crumbs!

~ Chocolate Sponge Cake with Chocolate Ganache and Blueberry Cream Cheese Filling

Adapted from:
The Foody
Allrecipes

Description:
Chocolate-frosted layer cake with blueberry and cream cheese filling~

Ingredients:

112.5 g sugar

75 g plain flour

37.5 g cocoa powder

3 eggs, separated

1/2 tsp cream of tartar

3/4 tso baking powder

1/2 tsp vanilla essence

100 g dark chocolate (72%) bars
100 ml cream
1 1/2 tsp rum

Directions:

1) Whisk plain flour, cocoa and baking powder together and sieve.
2) Combine sugar and cream of tartar together. Whisk egg whites with gradual additions of sugar and cream of tartar mixture till soft peaks form.
3) Beat egg yolks and vanilla till pale, and fold in egg whites, followed by flour mixture.
4) Grease a 14 X 14" baking tin, lined with buttered greaseproof paper. Pour batter evenly into the tin, and bake in preheated oven at 200 deg for 8 min. Take care not to overbake.
5) Dust a sheet of greaseproof paper with icing sugar and turn the sponge upside down onto it.
6) Remove the lining paper and trim the edges of the sponge cake. Cut into two equal rectangles and spread one with cream cheese filling and then blueberry jam. Place the other layer over the first, and chill cake.
7) To make the chocolate ganache, heat the cream in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil, watching very carefully because if it boils for a few seconds, it will boil out of the pot. When the cream has come to a boil, pour over the chopped chocolate, and whisk until smooth. Stir in the rum if desired.
8) Allow the ganache to cool slightly before pouring over the chilled cake. Start at the center of the cake and work outwards. Chill cake to set.

Remarks:

This was supposed to be a chocolate swiss roll or chocolate log cake for the yuletide season! But due to my incompetency, the swiss roll cracked too badly that I had to switch to making a chocolate cake instead.


The cake was frosted with chocolate ganache, which was made with a slight mistake in one of the ingredients. Using 3% whipping cream instead of heavy whipping cream, I couldn't whip the ganache to a filling for my cake (the ganache can be used on its own or whipped into a chocolate frosting). Thus, in a bid to create a contrasting filling for the cake, I'd blended my remaining cream cheese and some icing sugar till suitable consistency. Homemade blueberry jam was spreaded onto the cream cheese filling.

I really liked the resultant product after everything was assembled! The cake was very fluffy, moist and not too sweet, and the fillings were a treat! I didn't know that the cream cheese frosting and blueberry jam would go so well together. If I had known earlier, I would have planned for such a combination. 

Anyway, with my never-say-die attitude, I'll definitely attempt a chocolate swiss roll recipe again! But for now, I shall savour my exquisite cake!

~ Blueberry Sauce

Taken from:
Allrecipes

Description:
Thick blueberry sauce~

Ingredients (serves 4-6):

1 1/3 C fresh blueberries
2 tbsp water
5/8 C orange juice
1/4 C + 1 tbsp white sugar
2 tbsp cold water
1 tbsp + 1-1/2 tsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp almond extract
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

Directions:

1) In a saucepan over medium heat, combine 1 C blueberries, 2 tbsp water, orange juice, and sugar. Stir gently, and bring to a boil.
2) In a cup or small bowl, mix together the cornstarch and 1/4 cup cold water. Gently stir the cornstarch mixture into the blueberries so as not to mash the berries. Add in remaining blueberries and simmer gently until thick enough to coat the back of a metal spoon, 3 to 4 min.
3) Remove from heat and stir in the almond extract and cinnamon. Thin sauce with water if it is too thick.

Remarks:

Woah, this sauce was really thick. It didn't taste like blueberries after it was just made, instead it felt more like orange jam. Leave it to stand in the fridge for a day or two, and the blueberries will shine.


I found that the addition of almond extract yielded a rather weird tasting jam, if you have a strong preference for original tastes, omit the almond extract. The ground cinnamon blended well. I would recommend that the sugar to be cut down by one tbsp more so that it wouldn't be cloyingly sweet.


As a filling for my chocolate cake, which was meant to be a chocolate log cake at first, the jam certainly steals the show!

~ Crustless Tofu Veggie Quiche

Modified from:
Vegweb

Description:
Low carb veggie quiche~

Ingredients (serves 2):

1 tsp oil
1 onion

2 garlic cloves
1/2 head broccoli, chopped into small florets

(1 slice of ham, diced)
1 carrot, sliced
1 brinjal, sliced
1/4 C chopped spring onions
1 packet silken tofu, drained
2 tbsp mustard

1/4 C milk

1 tbsp potato starch

2 slices of processed cheese

Directions:

1) Sauteed onion, garlic and meat together till slightly browned.
2) Add a tbsp of water followed by carrots. Simmer for 5 min.
3) Add in brinjal and carrot. Simmer till vegetables are soft, approximately 10 min.
4) In the meantime, blend tofu, mustard, milk, cheese and starch till smooth.
5) Combine tofu sauce with the vegetables, and spoon over 2 oven dishes.
6) Bake at 200 deg for 20 min, and 180 deg for another 10 min. Let the dish set for 5 min before serving.

Remarks:

This is the first time I've made quiche, and moreover it's a vegan one! Bro doesn't fancy tofu nor any dish with no "staple carbs" so it's a nono for him.

For me, I felt pretty healthy after having this. (until I threw my carb balance off with 20 odd tang yuans and two pong pia)!

The culprits:

The accomplices:

The dish smelt like cheese-flavoured Pringles chips, but didn't taste like it. The cheese taste was subtle, with a slight predominance over tofu. To add a little omegas and crunch into it, I'd sprinkled some flaxseeds over the top. The carrots were a joy to the dish, and the brinjal too! However, the broccoli tasted kind of sourish, I wonder why. Additionally, I would to see a more solid quiche, so I guess the water that was added to the stir-frying of vegetables was uncalled for.