Chocolate Raspberry Marble Pound Cake with Chocolate-Raspberry Glaze

Hi

I like high fat cake!  Love cake that is buttery and creamy.  Sounds terrible right?  :D  But I’ll reduce sugar as much as possible as it is my preference for not too sweet cake.

This is the type of cake that my family enjoys it.  They love rich cake with thick chocolate ganache.

This is  my 1^st time making chocolate ganache with raspberry jam and it is also something new that my family was trying out.   

Overall, this is a wonderful cake with a subtle raspberry flavour on it and I enjoyed the process of making this cake too.

HAPPY BAKE ALONG!

INGREDIENTS

For the cake

3 oz         Semisweet or bittersweet chocolate (85g)

4 nos.      Large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten

2 tsp        Vanilla extra

190gm    Cake flour

¾ tsp       Baking Powder

¼ tsp       Salt

225g       unsalted butter, softened

1 ¼ cup   Sugar (I reduced to 100g)

¼ cup      Raspberry jam (120g)

For the glaze

¼ cup      Raspberry jam (120g)

6 tbsp      Heavy cream (a little bit more for pourable consistency)

4 oz         Bittersweet chocolate (114g)

1 tbsp      Raspberry liquer (skipped)

METHODS

For the cake

Preheat oven to 165˚C.  Grease d line a 9” by 5” loaf pan and dust with flour.  Place the chocolate in a bowl and melt completely over a pot of simmering water.  Set aside to cool.  Combine eggs and vanilla extract in a bowl and lightly beaten.  Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in another medium mixing bowl.

Combine the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl and cream with an electric mixer on medium high speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.  With the mixer on medium low speed, pour in the egg mixture in slow stream, stopping down the sides of the bowl after each addition.  After the last addition, mix for 30 seconds on medium speed.

Scrape half of the batter and whisk in the raspberry jam.  

Whisk the melted chocolate into the remaining batter.

Scape ½ of the raspberry batter into the loaf pan, smooth the top then add ½ of the chocolate batter.  Repeat the layers with remaining batter (or drop dollops of each batter into the pan) then run a knife blade through the batter to create marbling.  Do not overmix.

Bake the pound cake until it is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.  Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes before inverting it onto wire rack to cool completely.

 For the glaze

Heat up the ¼ cup of jam until loose and brush the warm jam all over the top and sides of the cake.  Combine the heavy cream, corn syrup and chocolate in a small pot and heat over medium, whisking until smooth.  Stir in the liquer if using.  Let stand until thickened, about 30 minutes, spoon the glaze all over the cake, smoothing it over the top and sides of the cake with small spatula.  Let stand until glaze firms up about 1 hour before slicing.

I did not make like the above.  After heating the jam and making of the chocolate glaze, I put them aside.  I will cut the cake into slices and spoon the glaze over each slice and serve.

Can store at room temperature for 2 days, wrap loosely in plastic or keep in the fridge.  Thaw before serving.

I’m linking my post to Bake Along.  From 20-30 August, we are baking along this cake from Cake Keeper Cakes by Lauren Chattman together with Zoe of Bake for Happy Kid, Joyce of Kitchen Flavours and Lena of Frozen Wings.

Banana Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcakes

Hi

Look at all the variety of Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcakes posted on the last Bake-Along.  This cake is so popular for its super soft and fluffy texture.  Really!  Tell me who will ever turn away such a pretty and delicious cake.

I had made a few round of Hokkaido Chiffon Cake during my last few gatherings with friends.  I love the Strawberry flavour (which you can find it here) so much until I have tried making the banana flavour one.

What made me decided to make the banana flavour of Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcake was the Tokyo Banana.  My 2 boys love Tokyo Banana so much.  I love it too, but I find the banana filling is overly too sweet for me.  Therefore, I tried making my own banana filling and took reference from Zoe’s Hokkaido Banana Cupcakes and it turned out to be so good and it tastes almost exactly like Tokyo Banana!! 

This is indeed an all-time favourite and fabulous recipe!

HAPPY BAKING!

INGREDIENTS

Cupcake

A.

80g         Egg yolk

40g         Castor sugar

(I reduced to 20g considering banana itself is sweet

30g         Vegetable oil

40g         Blended banana

100g       Cake Flour

3g            Baking powder

B.

120g       Egg white

80g         Castor Sugar (I reduced it to 40g)

2g            Cream of Tartar

Instruction:

Sieve flour and baking powder together, set aside.

Separate egg yolks and whites and bring to room temperature.

Place egg yolks in a mixing bowl, add in sugar, in 3 separate additions and with a manual whisk, whisk till the mixture becomes sticky and turn pale.

Drizzle in the oil, whisking at the same time till the mixture is well combine.  Sieve over the flour mixture and whisk until flour mixture is fully incorporated into the batter.

In a clean, dry mixing bowl, beat egg whites with an electric mixer until mixture becomes frothy and foamy.  Gradually beat in the sugar and beat on high speed until just before stiff peaks.

Add the beaten egg white into the egg yolk batter in 3 separate additions, each time folding gently with a spatula until just blended.

Spoon the batter into the paper cup and bake it in a pre-heated oven of 170˚C for 40-45mins or until the cake surface turns golden brown.

Banana Cream Fillings

100g       Banana (excluding the skin)

1 no        Egg

1 tbsp      Corn starch

3 tbsp      Dark brown sugar

120ml     Fresh milk

1 tbsp      Vanilla extract

Instructions:

Mash and blend the banana in the blender machine.

Mix in the rest of the ingredients.

Strain the mixture into through a sieve into the saucepan

Cook the mixture with low heat and constant stirring until it is thicken.  Do not over-cook your mixture. 

Remove the mixture from the heat and continue to stir until it is cooled.  Chill in the fridge for about an hour.

Transfer the mixture into the piping bag with the long narrow piping tip attached.  Pipe the cream into the cake and top with a slice of banana.

Dust the cake with icing sugar (Oh no! I forgot again but it’s optional lah :P) and serve.

I missed the 2 times of post link for Bake-Along on Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcakes.  I thought I could make it for the last one but again, I missed it L

But I’m submitting this post to Little Thumbs Up, which is organised by Zoe (Bake For Happy Kids); Doreen(My little favourite DIY) and for August, the theme is Molasses and Brown Sugar and it is hosted by Jess (Bakericious)

Sweet Brown Sugar BBQ Meatballs

Hi

These crispy meatballs are drizzled with a thick layer of sticky, sweet and savory sauce.  Really crispy outside and moist on the inside.  I must say they are really flavourful and fabulous.

I used all ground pork instead of mixing with ground beef.  They’re equally great!

This is the 1^st time I used HP BBQ Sauce and it’s the best sauce as compared to the rest of the BBQ sauce I had used so far.  It’s rich and has the authentic smokey flavoured.  My family could tell the difference.

The sauce, combined with the brown sugar, has become even thicker and more flavoured.  Fabulous Taste!    

Recipe adapted from Tablespoon.com

Happy Cooking for Little Thumbs Up!

INGREDIENTS

For the meatballs:

1 pound          Ground Beef

(I skipped and used all ground pork)

½ pound         Ground Pork

½ cup              Bread crumbs

½ cup              Parmesan cheese

1 no.                Egg

2 no.                cloves garlic, grated

                        Salt and pepper to taste

For the sauce:

½ cup              Brown sugar (should reduce)

½ cup              BBQ sauce

                        (I used HP sauce.  Should reduce as the sauce is overly

                             too thick after adding brown sugar)

2 tsp                Chillie flakes (or to taste)

                        Chives for garnish (optional)

METHOD

(1)Mix all of the meatball ingredients together and form balls.

(2)Heat a large frying pan with a little oil and gently, one by one, add in the meatballs and cook for about 4-5mins.  Flip the meatballs and cook for another 4-5mins.  Once they’re cooked on the outside, they should be a little less delicate.  Making sure none are stuck to the bottom, start tossing them in the pan a little more to cook them evenly. 

(3)Add 2 tablespoons of water to deglaze the pan, scrapping up any stuck on pieces.  Add the brown sugar, adding a little more water if it looks too dry.  It should start to bubble and look like dark caramel.

(4)Remove from the heat and add in the BBQ sauce.  Stir well. Serve and top with the chives.

Note:

I didn’t read the instruction properly and had made a huge mistake on Step 3 & 4.  I combined all the sauce together and later realised they are so thick and sticky.  

To fix the mistake, I added few tablespoon of water to the sauce and cooked it for few minutes before I glazed on the meatballs.  I’m so pleased that it turned out to be deliciously good! J

This is one more dish which uses brown sugar and I’m sharing this post by linking it to August Little Thumbs Up, which the theme is Molassses and Brown Sugar. 

The event is organised by Zoe (Bake For Happy Kids); Doreen(My little favourite DIY) and for August, it is hosted by Jess (Bakericious)

Cheers!

Brown Sugar & Balsamic Roasted Carrots

Hi

I really love these roasted carrots.  Coated with brown sugar and Balsamic, they are so tender, sweet and citrusy.

It has chewy texture, which outside is firm and inside is soft.  Brown sugar and balsamic vinegar really go well with carrots and they are simply perfect combination.

I alone finished 500g of carrots and they are so totally yum!

Recipe adapted by BBCGoodFood.com

Happy Baking!

INGREDIENTS

500g       Carrots, peels and halved lengthways

2 tbsp     Olive Oil

2 tbsp     balsamic vinegar

2 tbsp     light muscovado sugar

METHOD

(1)Heat oven to 180°C with fan or 160°C without fan.

(2)Cook carrots in boiling water for 10-15mins, until they are starting to soften, but still have some bite.  Drain and pat dry.

(3)Spread the carrots out in a roasting tin, drizzle with the oil and vinegar, then sprinkle over the sugar.  Season well with sea salt and black pepper, then roast or 45mins, turning occasionally, until the sugar has caramelized and the carrots are soft and tender.

For this month, the theme for Little Thumbs Up is Brown Sugar and Molassses.  Therefore, I’m linking the post to this event which is organised by Zoe (Bake For Happy Kids); Doreen(My little favourite DIY) and for August, it is hosted by Jess (Bakericious)