Optimus Prime & Bumblebee Macarons II

 My friend wanted some Optimus Prime and Bumblebee macarons for her son's birthday and I took the chance to challenge myself. Although I made these way back in 2018 over here, I thought of trying the full body versions this time round!

I used my default Swiss meringue method to make the shells.

Checkout the awesome feet on the shells!

I added in the details after baking using edible marker and cake paint from Sweet Sticks.

I filled the macarons with strawberry-raspberry stabilized ganache that is temperature stable enough to stay at room temperature during this heat wave period in Southeast Asia (but don't leave it out in the sun of course!). I packed it with lots of fruit too! To make it temperature stable and safe for leaving it out of the fridge for some time, I made the filling dairy -free.

Dairy-free berry ganache for macarons 

240g white chocolate couverture 

80g berry jam (cook and reduce berries of choice with 10% sugar)

5g freeze dried berry powders

10g light corn syrup

pinches of salt

1/4 tsp strawberry emulco

3g gelatin bloom in 12g ice water

2g soy lecithin added with chocolate to melt (optional)

Steps:

1. Melt chocolate with soy lecithin to 41C

2. Heat corn syrup, berry powder, salt, emulco and jam until warm, about 46C

3. Melt bloomed gelatin. mix with warm liquid ingredients.

4. Add 3. to warm melted chocolate. Stir briefly and emulsify with blender.

5. Press cling wrap to surface, leave at aircon temperature to firm up for an hour or fridge for 30 min. Transfer to piping bag and pipe onto macaron shells

Watch the video tutorial with my tips on how to make macaron shells that are smooth, sturdy and have even feet all around for complex shaped characters like these in my reel:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C6aL_ykS25e/?igsh=Mjk1MmlmMDUwaDVl

I had feedback that the macarons tasted fantastic, full of fresh berry flavour!

with love,

Phay Shing

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Chocolate Cheesecake Tarts (Classic Chocolate and Sanrio)

Which is your favorite cheesecake tart? Recipe for these no-bake chocolate cheesecake tarts below =) 

I experimented with a no-bake cookie dough as tart crust so that it is easier to shape, and will be teaching the chocolate version at my church APRC’s culinary arts ministry this Sunday. You can watch a reel video here for some steps. 

Dark Chocolate Cheesecake Tarts (by Susanne Ng) 
Makes 4 

Tart crust 

60g oat flour 

160g oreo cookie crumbs 

80g unsalted butter, melted 

30g honey 

Combine all in a medium mixing bowl. Mix with spatula and divide into 4 (around 70g mixture per tart). Spread and line base and sides of tart case with tart crust mixture. You can also roll out the dough to line the tart case. 

Chocolate cheesecake filling 

160g cream cheese, room temperature 

80g castor sugar 

110g dark chocolate callets (58%), melted 

10g cocoa powder, sifted 

110g heavy cream, chilled  

1. Melt chocolate in microwave (30+20 secs) or double boiler and allow to cool. 

2. Soften cream cheese with spatula, then beat cream cheese with sugar using spatula till smooth. 

3. Whip heavy cream to firm peaks using an electric mixer. 

4. Whisk/fold in half cream to melted chocolate, then whisk all in. 

5. Fold in cocoa powder, then quickly whisk to incorporate evenly.  

6. Whisk in cream cheese mixture till even. 

7. Fill 90-95g per tart (divide into four). Chill at least 15min to set cheesecake. 

        *Best to unmold after 2 hours. 

8. Decorate with gold flakes, or as desired. 

Recipe for the classic cheesecake version is found here (in caption). 

With lots of love, 

Susanne

 

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Capybara Yuzu Chocolate Hazelnut Chiffon Cake

 My family loves capybaras and the multitude of capybara plushies at home are a source of inspiration for my capybara bakes😆. Here are some simple yuzu chocolate hazelnut chiffon cakes that I made for fun but decided to make it into a kids baking class material!

The sponge is yuzu flavoured and coloured brown with a little cocoa powder. The pudding in the middle is a delicious chocolate hazelnut pudding. The ears and facial features are not made out of fondant, marzipan or modelling chocolate, AND you don't have to make an extra item using more ingredients to make those too!

Find out the secret of the simple hack I use to transform a plain chiffon cake to my family's favourite creature from this class happening during the June school holidays! Please click on this link to register. 

with love,

Phay Shing

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Puppy-in-Watermelon Chiffon Cake

 

How much is that doggie in the watermelon? =) I did this for a baking class (class video here) and it was super fun. I also made a reel video for this cake. Hope this made you smile! =)

With lots of love,

Susanne

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Negiusagi Honey Lemon Vanilla Marshmallows

 A friend from Italy requested for me to create Negiusagi marshmallows for content creation in October last year but I only got around to making it in March this year. I am taking the chance to share a flavoured marshmallow recipe as well!

Photo dumping some shots I took of the marshmallows that are honey lemon vanilla flavoured!

Here's the reel for the piping process:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5DhgM7SK9J/?igsh=MTUyM3A3cWRtZGNnZw==

Honey Lemon Vanilla Marshmallow 
Italian meringue

60g egg whites
10g sugar
4g lemon juice

140g sugar
1/8 tsp salt
60g honey
10g lemon juice
30g water
1 tsp vanilla extract

Gelatin bloom
9g gelatin
15g lemon juice
20g ice water

Please read the captions of the reel for tips on working with character marshmallows in hot climates and if you are artistically challenged.

Flavour variations, keto-friendly sugar-free options, detailed steps and technical tips are in my Deco Marshmallows book.

 The book is already available in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, and available for pre-orders in most countries.

with love,
Phay Shing 

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