Monday, 2 December 2024
Pandan Chiffon Christmas Trees
Sunday, 1 December 2024
Meringue Powder-Based Macarons
I made some Christmasy small macarons for our church's creche helpers this year! It may look like ordinary macarons but I am so excited to share it because these were made using meringue powder instead of fresh egg whites!
This meringue powder experiment and mass bake came about because of the superb performance of meringue powder for my character marshmallows. Although I am a convert to using meringue powder for marshmallows, I can't say I will do this for macarons. I will explain in this blog post. Although meringue powder as fresh or carton egg white substitution works, it's not without some differences/challenges. Just as sugar-free marshmallows are possible, it's impossible for macarons due to the presence of almond flour which contains oils, and the necessary condition that nice feet formation should be present on the cookie before it can be called a macaron.
I used this mass bake to conduct an experiment for small and large batch. Both pass with flying colours. The recipe I come up with has easy to remember ratios. The ratio for rehydration of meringue powder I use is 1:3 for meringue powder : water. The ratios of all the ingredients are 1:1:1:1 for "egg whites" : caster sugar : icing sugar : almond flour. Feel free to tweak it a little in terms of proportion but not by too much.
with love,
Phay Shing
Saturday, 23 November 2024
Christmas Macaron Gift Box
Instead of having an intensive two-day masterclass for bakes that require construction and lots of technical work, I decided to have a content that is practical for the season, full of things to learn but simple enough for beginners to handle. Presenting my macaron giftbox macaron masterclass!
The menu and designs for this class are carefully thought out to cover a range of flavours and techniques while keeping practicality in mind.
Menu:
❄️ Reindeer macarons. Cinnamon dark brown sugar macaron shells with gingerbread spice ganache
❄️ Penguin macarons. Dark brown sugar macaron shells with orange dark chocolate ganache and hazelnut butter
❄️ Christmas tree macarons. Textured matcha macaron shells with matcha ganache, dried cranberries and whole almond
❄️Snowman macarons. Plain macaron shells with peppermint white and dark chocolate ganache
🔸Fillings are all dairy-free and hold up well enough in the tropics to make gifting/transport more fuss-free. I keep them less sweet as well so they are flavourful without being too sweet
🔸Three ways of Swiss meringue method of making macarons will be taught. Why different ways? Because you may find one way more suitable than the other depending on application
🔸Natural food sources are used to colour as well as flavour the macarons as far as possible
🔸Designs are kept as simple as possible while showcasing technique so it's suitable for beginners
Please click on this link for more information or to register:
Here's the reel to have a closer look at the macarons!
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DClwN63SENx/?igsh=MThjaTVpYTUxNXI=
with love,
Phay Shing
Sunday, 17 November 2024
Christmas Bear with Present Marshmallow Class
This marshmallow creation not only looks good. It tastes great and is suitable as a cute festive gift!
The bears are made of coffee cinnamon vanilla marshmallows with no additional colouring added for the bear. The present is cinnamon vanilla coated chocolate hazelnut cake.
I have online and studio class versions for this. All studio participants get to have access to online class material at no extra charge. This is my first online/studio class introducing meringue powder as egg white replacement for my marshmallow class so some of you may be interested to know. I show you how to adjust the consistency of the marshmallow batter for different applications as well as how to create marshmallow coated cake.
Here's the link for studio class:
Here's the link for online class:
There's no expiry date for the online class version so you may refer to it at your own pace. The videos are in shorter segments to make it easier to follow.
with love,
Phay Shing
Monday, 4 November 2024
Christmas Cookie Box
It's that time of the year to prepare for our annual Christmas cookie bake for giveaway! This year, the Culinary Arts Ministry team from Adam Road Presbyterian Church has decided to create cookies that are easy to make, tasty, healthier and makes use of Redman's Super biscuit premix. Why the premix? Because it tastes awesome and you only need good unsalted butter as the other essential ingredient. So here are the cookie flavours I have come up with using the premix!
(makes about 18 trees)
with love,
Phay Shing
Saturday, 2 November 2024
Sugar-Free Capybara Apple Pop Tarts
I made these felt toy lookalike capybara pop tarts for hubby's birthday!
I tried to make it as low a GI as possible without compromising taste and kept the use of artificial colouring minimal.
Sugar-Free Capybara Apple Pop Tarts
9. Freeze assembled tart while preheating oven to 170C fan/185C
10. Bake 10-12min. Rotate tray & bake another 10-12min or until lightly browned. Adjust baking conditions to whatever works for your oven as each oven is different.
* Additional notes:
🔸Alchemy fibre: A prebiotic fibre mix of inulin & edible gum. Glycemic index is not zero but has beneficial effect on gut health, glycemic load and cholesterol. Tastes mildly sweet
🔸The portion of apple filling is more than enough for filling 4 capybara pop tarts. I recommend serving the pop tarts with extra filling on the side as overstuffing the tarts may risk them exploding during baking. Other types of fillings that are rich like S'mores (milk chocolate & toasted marshmallows), or really strong flavoured like jams that are sweet and tart at the same time need not have filling top-ups
🔸You may replace some of the butter with shortening if your environment is really warm like mine (30-31C kitchen these days 🥵) for better shape retention
🔸 Egg wash: Mix egg yolk with 15g water for a regular egg wash or to glue pieces of dough together. For the brown stitch egg wash paint, dissolve cocoa powder in boiling hot water, then mix in 20g egg wash. I used fine tweezers instead of a fork to crimp the edges for a more realistic stitch pattern. Fork tinnes tend to be a little thicker so it won't appear too "stitch-like"
🔸 Tarts can be stored at room temperature for 2 days or in the fridge for a week tightly wrapped. Extra apple filling can be stored in the fridge for a week. Reheat by toasting tart for a few minutes until sizzling before consuming it piping hot with extra filling. If you aren't diabetic, you may pair it with a caramel drizzle and vanilla ice cream 😋
Here's the video of the process:
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DB4492cykUz/?igsh=MWc5aGl1OXYxenh0bg==
with lots of love,
Phay Shing
Saturday, 26 October 2024
Capybara Strawberry Ice-Cream Roll Cake
I made a capybara strawberry ice-cream roll cake for my younger kid's birthday, in time for this sudden hot spell!
Sunday, 20 October 2024
BT21 Marshmallow-Macaron Music Box
My friend wanted to surprise his girlfriend again with a BT21 themed birthday creation so he requested for a music box with RJ as the standing figurine.
See the process of making this epic project in my reel over here:
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DBLk6U6yR3t/?igsh=cGRoYWd0eHdrenhi
with love,
Phay Shing
Tuesday, 15 October 2024
Hotpot Chiffon Cake
Too cute to eat?
I made these cakes for my dear DG mates birthday celebrations. The soup was made from apple jelly.
Watch the reel video here for more details. Thank God the cake was well-received. I may try planning a class for this in future. Hope you liked it too!
With love,
Susanne
Saturday, 12 October 2024
Capybara in Orangeland Yuzu Orange Swiss Roll
I have been eyeing the U-shaped cake mold from Qeleg for the longest time. I finally have the chance to try it out!
Here's the video of the process:
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DA0m442ylQS/?igsh=MXY4aW84eWpwd2lkcg==
Capybara in Orangeland roll cake recipe
Feel free to use any patterning method/ recipe you like. I developed my own for a more stable patterning batter that doesn't crack at the boundaries, produces sponge with fine pores suitable as a painting canvas & has a similar soft texture as the base sponge. I am not ready to share the method and recipe for the pattern I developed at the moment.
(Makes one 12x12" thin layer of sponge)
Egg yolk batter
3 egg yolks*
30g oil in
45g yuzu jam tea**
54g cake flour, sifted
Pinches of salt
1/16tsp orange emulsion (optional)
Meringue
3 egg whites*
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
45g sugar
Cake Filling:
25g yuzu jam, blended
100g whipping cream of choice
4 small sweet mandarins, halved
Extra yuzu jam tea
* Large eggs at least 65g with shell on
** Blend 40g of yuzu jam with rind in 40g hot water. Sieve through fine sieve. Use the liquid for making sponge & brushing sponge before filling
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 170C. Make cake pattern using your preferred method & recipe
2. Make egg yolk batter. Whisk egg yolks, orange emulsion, salt & oil together. Add flour & yuzu jam tea in alternating additions, whisking until well combined each time
3. Make meringue. Beat egg whites with cream of tartar until firm peaks, gradually add sugar once egg whites are foamy
4. Fold meringue into yolk batter. Pour over pattern. Bake for 15 min or until done
5. Cut the patterned U shaped piece & rectangular piece for the base. Paint the sponge as desired
6. Whip whipping cream until firm peaks, fold in blended yuzu jam. Transfer into piping bag
7. Place sponge pattern side down on parchment paper. Brush sponge with some yuzu jam tea. Put in U-shaped mold from Qeleg
8. Fill the sponge with cream & mandarins. Cover base with rectangular sponge. Freeze for 30-40min. Flip the cake over onto serving plate/cakeboard. Keep chilled in airtight condition. Consume within 3 days
You may use this link to browse Qeleg's website with the discounts already in-built or use my promo code: Phay_Shing. They have a wide range of silicone molds, metal trays, cookie cutters, fondant molds and more!
with love,
Phay Shing
Sunday, 6 October 2024
Optimus Prime and Bumblebee Rose Tea Marshmallows
My friend requested for some Bumblebee and Optimus Prime bakes. Since I have already made the macaron versions earlier this year, I thought why not challenge myself with the marshmallow version since I was concurrently working on another epic marshmallow project.
Watch the squish and piping reel for these Autobots over here:
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DAnt-Wlyhjt/?igsh=bzByNnZyNmdsaWhq
with love,
Phay Shing
Sunday, 29 September 2024
'Knight Z Travels Around the World' Macaron Carousel
This is the fourth consecutive year I am making a macaron carousel for a young knight! Knight Z has taken a liking to travelling around the world so this is this year's macaron carousel for him!
Here's the reel of the assembly:
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DAbBrwFyP87/?igsh=YjUzeW16ZnU0YXEw
with love,
Phay Shing