Are you Twitter-ing?

Have you been compulsively updating your moves (in 140 words) on Twitter 24-7? Seems like Twitter is the next big thing after Facebook. For those of you who aren’t quite familiar with it, Twitter is basically an online tool that allows your friends and family to communicate and find out what you are doing. As long as you are logged on, you can update your status and post pictures. Simply put, you can call it an online tracking tool. You can also follow other Twitter-ers and track their movements. I have been following Ashton Kutcher on Twitter and that guy is really entertaining. He is an avid Twitter-er and we followers get a behind the scene in to his life and movie set of his latest flick he is filming. Pretty cool, but other than that, unless you are always online, you may not be too into Twitter. Perhaps its more for movie stars and models who can delight their fans with their latest movements.

I am finally on leave after being busy for the past 3 months. Will be busy studying for the upcoming CPA exam in May, and hopefully catch up with some sleep as well. I bought this cook book from Kinokuniya ages ago and have yet to try any recipes in it. Even though I bookmarked quite a few. *hangs head in shame* These mini honey cakes are really easy to make and you can whip up a batch in half an hour. I use this brand of honey because it reminds me of my granny. She used to make me hot honey using this  Do use a good honey for the flavour will shine through in the cake.

Simple Honey Cupcakes

(Adapted from 100 cake recipes by Teacher Meng)

 

30g oil (any flavorless oil)

45g honey

3 large eggs

40g sugar

75g cake flour

½ tsp baking powder

 

1.     Preheat oven to 165C (325F). Line a 10 cup muffin tray or grease with cooking spray. Pour honey and oil into a cup (or bowl) and warm it over a pot of simmering water for about 10 minutes until honey melts. Stir mixture and leave it aside.  

 

2.     Whisk flour and baking powder together before sifting.

 

3.     With your stand mixer fit with whisk attachment, beat eggs and sugar, gradually increasing speed from medium to high. The batter will gradually change to a pale yellow, 8 – 10 minutes. To test whether the batter is ready, lift the whisk attachment and allow the batter to trickle back into the bowl. The batter will not sink immediately. Continue to beat at low speed for 1 minute.

 

4.     Add in the dry ingredients and warmed honey and oil mixture into the batter. Stir quickly but gently until just combined.

 

5.     Divide the batter evenly, filling them up to ¾ full. Bake for about 16 – 22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcakes comes out clean. Makes about 10 – 11 cupcakes. Store in an air tight container for up to 3 days.

 

Note: Pour 3 tablespoons of water into unfilled cupcake moulds before baking. This will help to prevent the moulds from distorting in the hot oven.

 

Goodbye, Fatty…..

My hamster Fatty passed away a couple of weeks back. The picture above was taken when he was snoozing at his favourite spot, the exercise wheel. Fatty was given to me by Elvis as a belated birthday present. He came to our home on 1st Jan 2008. He was a very gentle hamster, and won’t venture out of his cage even when we accidentally left it open the whole day. He wasn’t called Fatty for nothing. His size and good appetite eventually earned him the name. He was definitely my mom’s favourite hamster, who will feed him several times a day with little snacks. We will always remember how he would run to the side of his cage to greet us whenever we are close by. How he will innocently dig sand and act busy when he too full to take another bite. How he will run miles on his exercise wheel and create a ruckus in the middle of the night. He is always game for any snack we give him and usually have second or third helpings. He is probably one of the fattest hamster I ever had. Despite his short life here in our home, I am sure he was happy. The other two remaining hamsters were a little moody the couple of days after he passed away. They knew…. 

The cookie recipe I have today is another winner from Smitten Kitchen. I bookmarked it a thousand years ago and wanted to try it after numerous rave reviews. I used my best Valrhona white chocolate discs. The weather was so hot when I was making this that my creaming of sugars resulted in a runny batter. My butter has melted!! I quickly froze it in the fridge for 15 minutes before continuing. My cookie spread quite a bit and turned out a little flat. Still, they were delicious. Though I would probably lessen the butter to 12 tablespoon next time for a firmer dough. Fatty would have loved it. You are sadly missed, Fatty.

Crispy Salted Oatmeal White Chocolate Cookies
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon table salt
14 tablespoons (1 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter, slightly softened
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

6 ounces good-quality white chocolate bar, chopped (not “white chocolate” chips; they’re almost always artificial. I am adamant about this.)

1/2 teapoon flaky sea salt (like Maldon or fleur de sel) (for sprinkling on top)

 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or Silpat. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and table salt in a medium bowl.

 

2. Beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Scrape down bowl with rubber spatula, then add egg and vanilla and beat until incorporated. Scrape down bowl again. Add flour mixture gradually and mix until just incorporated and smooth. Gradually add oats and white chocolate and mix until well incorporated.

 

3. Divide dough into 24 equal portions, each about 2 tablespoons. Roll between palms into balls, then place on lined baking sheets about 2 1/2 inches apart. Using fingertips, gently press down each ball to about ¾-inch thickness.

 

4. Sprinkle a flake or two of sea salt on each cookie

 

5. Bake until cookies are deep golden brown, about 13 to 16 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through. Transfer baking sheet to wire rack to cool.

 

Perhaps, nothing

Love is a funny thing. It comes and goes. Sometimes, without you noticing it. When you look back at an old relationship, have you ever wondered when did it all started? When did it started to end? When was the point you stopped caring? Or should I say started caring less? I bet many of you can’t pin point the exact moment. The moment that you started to let go, bit by bit. One fine day, or perhaps, after a particularly nasty quarrel, you feel that perhaps you can do without this person. Or maybe nothing happened. Everything simply stopped. You suddenly find that you have nothing in common with this person. You have nothing to share with him or her. Even though it wasn’t too long ago that you felt your heart beat a little faster when you saw him or her. That you were constantly on cloud nine. That every thing seemed so right. So perfect. Somehow, along the way, the person that was walking side by side with you started to drift. Little by little, the distance became wider. And suddenly you find yourself walking down the road alone. By now you are probably wondering what I am trying to get at… Perhaps, nothing at all.

It has been a while since I updated my blog. Been so busy with work that I have no time bake. Been doing quite abit of thinking about my future. Feeling a little better now. Thank you for checking out my site every now and then. Heart you all!! I long wanted to try out this mocha walnut cake. It is quite easy to do, but do remember to butter or oil your bundt pan generously. Mine stuck to the pan. Still, it was yummy. The mocha and walnut mix was perfect in this cake. Enjoy!

MOCHA-WALNUT MARBLED BUNDT CAKE

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup walnuts, finely ground
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
9 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature, divided use
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup coffee (hot or cold)
1 teaspoon instant coffee, finely ground (or instant espresso powder)
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup whole milk, room temperature

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter 12 cup Bundt pan, dust the inside with flour and tap out the excess. Don’t place the pan on a baking sheet – you want the oven’s heat to circulate through the Bundt’s inner tube.

Wisk together the flour, ground walnuts, baking powder and salt.

Set a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of gently simmering water. Put 2 tablespoons of the butter, cut into 4 pieces, into the bowl, along with the chocolate, coffee and instant coffee. Heat the mixture, stirring often, until the butter and chocolate are melted and everything is smooth and creamy – keep the heat low so that the butter and chocolate don’t separate. Remove the bowl from the heat.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the remaining 2 sticks butter and the sugar at medium speed for about 3 minutes – you’ll have a thick paste; this won’t be light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one by one, beating well after each addition. The mixture should look smooth and satiny. Beat in the vanilla extract. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients and the milk alternately, adding the dry mixture in 3 portions and the milk in 2 (begin and end with the dry ingredients).

Scrape a little less than half the batter into the bowl with the melted chocolate and, using a rubber spatula, stir to blend thoroughly.

If you want to go for the gingko pattern, scrape all of the white batter into the pan and top with the chocolate and marble it minimally. If you want a more marbled pattern, alternate spoonfuls of the light and dark batter in the pan. When all the batter is in the pan, swirl a table knife sparingly through the batter to marble them.

Bake for 65 to 70 minutes, or until a thin knife inserted deep into the center of the cake comes out clean. Transfer the Bundt pan to a rack and let cool for 10 minutes before unmolding, then cool the cake completely on the rack.