Breadmaking - Not a Success Story

A book titled - Baking and Pastry: Mastering the Art and Craft caught my attention recently. After reading reviews on it from Amazon, I decided to place a reservation for this book from the National Library. Having done some research on the price, I knew that I have to make that the book is worth its heavy price tag before getting it. This book easily costs above a 100 bucks in local bookstores and being an observant bakebook shopper myself, I know cookbooks and bakebooks hardly ever cross this mark.

I could not contain my excitement and eagerly flipped through the book the day I loaned it from the library. 'Wow' was the first thing that came to mind. The book spans over 900 pages and covers almost everything a baker needs to know, including bread, cakes, cookies, tarts, pastries, icings, chocolates even plated desserts, frozen desserts and savoury bakes. At the forefront of the book was an introduction to career opportunites for baking and pastry professionals, followed by introduction to ingredients and equipment, baking principles and food safety.

There are, however, some minor drawbacks. The section of  baking principles could be explained in further details and the recipes need to be scaled down when intended for home use. Overall, the book would make a very comprehensive textbook or homebaking reference for inspiring bakers. So far, I have been impressed by the content  and hopefully it will make its way into my library of bakebooks soon.  

Back to the main intention of this post, I tried my hands at bread-making a second time today: raisins plaited ring bread from I Can Bake by Agnes Chang. The entire kneading process took me like 40 minutes, both using my hands and the dough hook. Compared to baking cakes and cookies, this is certainly a chore for me. I have always been less inclined towards bread making and this provided a good reason as to why I should stay away.

I managed to get the dough to the window pane stage by stretching the dough gently and slowly to reveal a transulent membrane like appearance. The plaiting, however, turned out to be nightmarish. For the first half of the dough, I separated it into two equal portions instead of three as indicated and rolled the portions out to about 35cm long and plaited them.When the plaited ring was proofed a second time, it went out of shape. To make matters worst, I overbaked the dough and ended with a hideous stiff-crust dark brown ring bread. 

The second plaited dough turned out slightly better after baking. To prevent the dough from over-browning, I covered the top with aluminium foil halfway through the required baking time. In all, this bread making experience is not quite a success. I have no complaints regarding the taste but the bread turned out dry with a tough crust when cooled, not fluffy as seen on the pictures on the book. Wonder what went wrong...

Post Baking Analysis:

1) Possibility of underproofing as suggested by Wendy. Will do my 1st  and 2nd proofing longer. Both took me more slightly more than an hour.

2) Baking temperature too high. I used 200 degrees C. Perhaps I will reduce it to 190 degrees C next time.

3) Baking time too long. I baked at 20 minutes at 200 Degrees C. Will reduce it in future.

4) I realised that my second proofing does'nt seem to be effective. Perhaps next time I might omit the second proofing. Need to do some research on this...  

5) (Latest) Just realised that I added more flour than asked for due to a mistake. Oops! This should be the main culprit for the dry and tough texture.

Buried Treasure - Lychee Butter Cake

Earlier, my friend helped me to buy 3 blocks of Elle & Vire butter from Sun Lik. Each block only costs S$3.20 whereas it is selling at Carrefour outlets for S$5.20. As it is manufactured in France and french butter are considered premium, I was looking forward to see if it would make any difference in my bakes. 

I chose a lychee butter cake recipe from one of my books: Baking with Fruits by Kevin Chai. It was weird that the recipe did not ask for any leavening agents. From a previous experience, a cupcake which I attempted from Martha Stewart's recipe which too did not ask for any leavening agents turned out to be dense. Hence, I tweaked the recipe to obtain a cake with lighter texture, omitting the almonds and cornmeal, substistuted an egg yolk for a whole egg, added some lychee sryup, used self-raising flour instead and increased the proportion of ingredients. The changes were so much that the recipe I formulated was no longer an adaption from the original. Rather it was a whole new recipe inspired by the original. 

Following the pictures from the book, I placed drained canned lychees evenly on top of the batter. The lychees were supposed to be visible on top after baking, looking somewhat like a lychee version of  a pastry fruit cake. However, the batter rose and buried all of them. I then realised why the original recipe did not ask for any leavening agents. Perhaps that was the trick to keep them in place. Nevertheless, I did not regret my decision. I would rather have a cake with a more desirable texture rather than one that is pleasing to the eyes but fail to satisfy my palate.  

The end result was a nicely browned lychee butter cake with slightly uneven top due to the batter rising and making its way about the lychees. Anyway, that did not matter much since the cake was going to be sliced up anyway.

My efforts were rewarded as I dug into a rich and fragrant butter cake. The lychees were a little soft though and tasted mushy. Well, lychees are definitely unlike apples which can keep their firmness well after baking. I guess this is why apples are a favourite fruit choice among bakers, including me.

Among the brands of butter I have tried, Elle & Vire is certainly quite outstanding. I could taste the richness of the sweet unsalted butter, or maybe my palate was tricked by the salt and the lychee syrup. Anyway, I am pleased with my new found lychee butter cake recipe. If there is anything that I need to change, it would probably be using smaller bits of lychees instead since the lychee wholes do not hold well to the butter cake after slicing.

Lychee Butter Cake (Recipe inspired from Baking with Fruits by Kevin Chai)

Serving size: 20cm/8 inch square cake, 16 slices

Equipment and materials:

1) Stand electric beater/ handheld electric beater or wooden spoon
2) Measuring spoon set
3) Spatula
4) Mixing bowl
5) Wire rack
6) 20cm (8inch) square pan
7) Flour sieve
8) Parchment/baking paper
9) Brush for oiling pan
10) Weighing scale
11) Balloon whisk
12) Aluminium foil
 

Ingredients:

165g unsalted butter, softened

135g castor sugar

2 eggs, at room temperature ( 55-60g each)

1 egg yolk

3 & 1/2 tbs lychee syrup (from canned lychees) 

175g self raising flour

1/4 tsp salt
1 can tin of lychees, well drained. Slice each lychee whole into 3 smaller pieces.

Method: 

Baking preparation: Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Line a 20cm/8inch square pan with baking paper.

Prepare dry ingredients: Sift flour into a large bowl. Add in salt and use a whisk to combine the flour and salt, ensure the salt is evenly distributed.

Making the batter: In a mixing bowl, beat butter with sugar until pale and fluffy, as mentioned in How to Cream Butter. Add in whole eggs and egg yolk one by one to the creamed butter. Beat on medium speed until each egg is combined before adding the next. Scrape the sides and bottom of mixing bowl with a spatula after the third egg is beaten and combined. Beat the mixture for a further 15 seconds. Next, add in the lychee syrup. Beat until combined.

Incorporating the flour: Lastly, add in the flour mixture in two batches. Beat until the first batch flour of flour is absorbed before adding the second batch. Once the second batch of flour is absorbed, scrape sides and bottom of bowl with a spatula to incoporate stray flour. Beat for a further 30 seconds to ensure batter is smooth and well mixed. Do not overmix or cake will be tough.

Adding the lychees: Fold half of the sliced lychees into cake batter and ensure lychees are evenly distributed. Pour into prepared tin and level top with a spatula, Spread the remaining lychees evenly on the top of cake batter.   

Baking the cake: Bake at 180 degrees C for 40-45 minutes. To test for doneness, insert a toothpick or wooden skewer. It should come out clean. If not, return to oven to bake untill done.

Notes:

1) Top of cake may brown faster than it is being cooked. If this happens, use a piece of aluminium foil to cover the top of the square pan.

2) 3 whole eggs can be used instead of using 2 eggs and 1 egg yolk. Having more whole eggs will result in a stronger structure and hence a less tender product. I substituted the egg yolk for whole egg to give a slightly more tender product.

 

Cheesecakes and Baking Tips

When it comes to cakes, Cheesecakes belong to a league of their own. There are mainly two types of cheesecakes: baked and unbaked (also known as chilled cheesecakes). Cheesecakes are often flourless. However, some baked cheesecake recipes do call for small amounts of plain flour or corn starch to hold the cheesecake together and give it a more cake-like texture.

A water bath is sometimes used for baked cheesecakes. This involves the cheesecake tin submerged in a larger pan filled with hot water. Using a water bath promotes a moist environment and encourages even heat distribution, resulting in cheesecakes with creamier texture. Compared to the conventional butter cake, baked cheesecakes are actually baked custards, albeit creamier and denser. On the other hand, chilled cheesecakes often calls for whipped cream and gelatin powder to hold the structure. In fact, the texture of unbaked cheesecakes very much resembles that of a firm gelatinous cheesy mousse.

The main ingredients used in cheesecakes are cream cheese, eggs and sugar. The choice of cheese may differ slightly with some recipes suggesting ricotta, cottage or mascarporne cheese. Sometimes, it is a mixture of two types of cheese. Most people may be more familiar with the American style cheesecake which usually calls for sour cream or whipping cream as the liquid ingredient. American style cheesecakes are rich and dense whereas the Japanese cheesecake (also known as cotton cheesecake or souffle cheesecake) is light, velvety and cake-like.  

Cheesecakes may or may not come with a base. The base may be made from digestive biscuits, graham crackers, ground nuts, brownies, pastry or sponge cake.

I am a self-confessed cheesecake lover who loves to bake and eat cheesecakes. Having baked quite a couple of cheesecakes, the following are my observations and tips on baking/making cheesecakes. Hope they are useful to you: 

1) When cheesecakes are baked and come into contact with cold air suddenly, they may be subjected to cracks on the surface. This happens when the oven door is fully opened after the cheesecake is baked. To prevent cracks from surfacing, the baked cheesecake should be cooled in the switched off oven gradually for sometime before being removed to cool on a wire rack.

2) Cheesecakes baked in a water bath are less likely to experience cracks on the surface. The entire cheesecake would have a more uniform density and texture as opposed to cheesecakes baked without a water bath. Cheesecakes baked without a water bath would have tough and dry edges. Nowadays, I bake all my cheesecakes in a water bath.

3) When using a water bath, be sure to wrap 2 or more layers of aluminuim foil around the bottom and sides of the pan to prevent water leaking into the pan.

4) When a cheesecake recipe calls for whipping cream, do not overbeat the mixture when the cream is added. The cream may separate and result in an undesirable grainy texture.

5) When beating in eggs or liquid ingredients into cheesecake mixture, beat on low speed and mix until combined. Do not overbeat as air will be incoporated into the batter, resulting in a sunken cheesecake when cooled. Run a spatula through the cheesecake mixture in a zig zag manner to eliminate some of the air bubbles or rap the cheesecake tin on a solid surface and allow air bubbles to rise to the surface.  

6) Cheesecakes are done when they appear to be softly set and will jiggle slightly (centre is less set and  more wobbly compared to edges) when the pan is moved. The baked cheesecake will continue to firm up as it cools down after baking and when it is being chilled in the refrigerator. Personally, I like my cheesecakes to be softly set throughout the surface without the centre being more wobbly (when using a water bath).  

7) Baking times will affect the density of the baked cheesecake. Cheesecakes that are baked longer will be denser and dryer. Vary the baking time (shorten or lengthen)to get your desired texture. Cheesecakes that are overbaked will turn out dry and tough whereas cheesecakes that are underbaked may not hold their shape well (very watery in texture) when sliced. It will be easier to vary baking times using a water bath without drying out the cheesecake.

8) When using a water bath while the recipe does not call for one, the baking time will be longer.

9) When buying cream cheese, select the ones in rectangular blocks rather than those in tubs (more for cheese spread). The composition of the cream cheese in these packagings are different.

10) A good brand of cream cheese to use would be Philadelphia cream cheese.

11) Cheesecakes store for up to 7 days in the refrigerator. Cheesecakes can be frozen to last longer.

12) Always keep cheesecakes in the refrigerator and serve them chilled. According to some sources, the flavour of cheesecakes mature as the number of days pass.

13) When using vanilla, use the best quality vanilla to give the cheesecake a full bodied aroma. The difference in quality of vanilla used in cheesecakes is noticeable.

14) For unbaked (chilled) cheesecakes, the quantity of gelatin used is often crucial in ensuring that the cheesecake sets well. Ensure that gelatine is well dissolved using a bain marie/ double boiler but do not over heat the gelatine mixture.

15) To cut cheesecakes into neat slices, wipe the knife with a kitchen towel after every slice.

16) To give the cheesecake a smooth finishing around the perimeter, dip a knife in hot water. Dry the knife with a kitchen towel and run around the sides of the cheesecake. Repeat the step if necessary.

Baking cheesecakes is an uncomplicated affair. There are hardly any major disasters to send you on a panic. Whether you are a seasoned baker anot, it will be a good idea to include them on your baking list. So, why not get some cream cheese and start baking one right away?

The above are based on my observations and experience. The tips provided, while they work well for me, may not be suitable for everyone. Feel free to provide suggestions, opinions or comments on this article.

Useful References:

1) Baking Cheesecake: Step by Step

2) Tips for Cheesecake

3) Cheesecake 101

4) Cheesecake 101: Problems with solutions

Instagram link: http://instagram.com/bakertanbakes

Cookies and Cream Cheesecake

Earlier, my apple-upside down cheesecake vanished without a trace. This time round, I made sure that the same thing would not happen again.

I baked a cookies and cream cheesecake meant for my friend's birthday. To me, cookies and cream cheesecakes are no different from Oreo cheesecakes. If it has to be a chocolate sandwich cookie, the choice would be none other than Oreo.

Unlike the previous attempt, I decided to tweak the filling a little and simply added some finely ground Oreo cookies to the filling, hoping to achieve a texture similiar to that of cookies and cream ice cream, cream coloured with tiny flecks of Oreo. I ended up being too generous with the addition and the cheesecake filling turned out to a greyish-brown hue.

When the cheesecake was cooling down on a wire rack, the filling appeared to have totally set. From my previous experiences,  baked cheesecakes were supposed to be softly set instead while cooling on the wire rack. It then ocurred to me that I have probably overestimated and overbaked the cheesecake. Pressing down on the surface of the cheesecake with my index finger, the surface was dry and would not give way under pressure. It seemed as though  the cheesecake needed no further chilling in the refrigerator for the final firming up. Even though I had the hunch that the cheesecake would turn out rock hard after chilling, I chucked the cheesecake into the refrigerator as usual.

Decorating the cake was easy. It only involved placing Oreo sandwich cookies near the edges round the cheesecake. Some finely ground oreo crumbs were sprinkled in the middle for a final touch. After everything was in place, all I had to do was wait for the results.

Before the cutting of cake, I warned and apologized to my friend that I might have overbaked the cake. It turned out that my worries were unfounded. Whew! The Oreo cheesecake was desirably dense and smooth in the mouth. Nope, not dry at all as I had thought. I had been duped. 

Cookies and Cream Cheesecake a.k.a Oreo Cheesecake: ( Recipe adapted from Cheesecake Seduction by Catherine Lau)

Serving size: 12 slices
Taste and texture: Dense and thick but not dry. Shorten baking time to get a less dense and creamier texture.
Equipment and materials:
1) Stand electric beater/ handheld electric beater
2) Food processor/ rolling pin
3) Measuring spoon set
4) Spatula
5) Mixing bowls
6) Wire rack
7) 9 inch springform tin
8) Baking tray larger than springform tin
9) Aluminium foil

Biscuit base:
200g Oreo cookies, finely ground (cream filling removed)
90g melted butter
1 tbs brown sugar

Cheesecake filling:
500g cream cheese, softened
120g castor sugar
200ml whipping cream
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs, lightly beaten
10 g Oreo cookies, cream removed and finely ground (This is optional. I used 30g Oreo sandwich cookies with cream removed and the cheesecake filling turned out very dark as depicted in pictures)
9 oreo sandwich cookies with cream filling, coarsely chopped (use hands to break into coarse bits) or 90g coarsely chopped Oreo cookies with cream removed.

Toppings
9 Oreo sandwich cookies
1 Oreo sandwich cookie, cream removed and finely ground

Method:
Making the base: Prepare biscuit base as mentioned in Preparing a Cheesecake Tin. Freeze prepared base for 10 minutes or until ready for use.

Preparing the oven: Preheat oven to 150 degrees C

Preparing cheesecake filling: Beat cream cheese and sugar untill creamy on medium speed. Add whipping cream and vanilla extract to cream cheese mixture on low speed. Beat until smooth and incorporated. Do not overbeat else the cream may separate (due to excessive beating), resulting in a grainy batter. Lastly, add the eggs and beat until combined on low speed.

Adding in cookies to cheesecake filling: Add in the finely ground cookie crumbs from 10g Oreo cookies (with cream removed) to the prepared cheesecake filling. Next, mix in the finely ground cookie crumbs a little at a time. Stop adding once you are satisfied with the colour. The objective is to obtain a texture similar to cookies and cream ice cream with tiny flecks of Oreo cookie. (This step is optional)

Lastly, fold in the coarsely chopped cookie bits, with or without cream filling as desired.

Baking the cheesecake: Pour filling onto biscuit base. Wrap top and sides of spring form tin with aluminium foil as mentioned in Preparing a Cheesecake Tin. Bake at 150 degrees C for 1 hour 15 minutes in a water bath. The filling should be set and will not jiggle much when pan is moved.

Cooling the cheesecake: When baked, allow cheesecake to cool in the oven with oven door ajar for 30 minutes. Remove the tin from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack. Place cooled cheesecake tin in the refrigerator and chill for 4-6 hours. Dislodge chilled cheesecake from cheesecake tin.

Decorating the cheesecake: To decorate the cheesecake, place the 9 Oreo sandwich cookies near the edge and around the cake. Sprinkle with oreo cookie crumbs in the centre. Serve cheesecakes chilled.

Notes:
1) To slice cheesecake nicely, wipe the knife after each slice with kitchen towel/s.
2) To smooth the sides of the cheesecake, dip a knife in hot water. Wipe the knife dry and run it around the perimeter of the cheesecake. Repeat the step if necessary.
3) This recipe uses 3 to 4 tubular packs (150g per tube) of Oreo cookies.
4) I baked the cheesecake for 1 hour 45 minutes resulting in a very dense texture. Any longer and the cheesecake would dry out.

Instagram link: http://instagram.com/bakertanbakes

Preparing a Cheesecake Tin and Water Bath

Preparing the cheesecake tin requires some effort. Firstly, a piece of aluminium foil is placed over the base of the springform tin. The springform ring is then placed over the foil and secured onto the base, sandwiching the aluminium foil. 

Next, the biscuits are whizzed in the food processor into fine crumbs. Biscuits can also be placed in a ziplock bag and crushed into crumbs using a rolling pin. Melted butter and brown sugar are then added and mixed with the biscuit crumbs until well combined. The sandy mixture is then pour onto the base of the springform tin which was line earlier with foil. Using the back of a spoon, the biscuit mixture is flattened uniformly. Once the biscuit base is prepared, Freeze it for 10 minutes or until cheesecake filling is prepared for use.

After the cheesecake filling is prepared, the filling is poured onto the prepared biscuit base. The bottom and sides are then wrapped with two layers of foil. This is to prevent water from the water bath leaking into the cheesecake base. The prepared springform tin is placed onto a larger baking tray/tin and is placed into the oven. Hot water is poured onto the baking tray up to one-third the height of the springform tin. This is what is known as baking using a water bath.

A water bath helps to maintain a moist environment and uniform distribution of heat during the baking process. The resulting cheesecake will be creamier, without the presence of dry sides and surface. Waterbath baked cheesecakes are also less susceptible to big cracks upon cooling.

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Where is the Cake?

Frankly, I have a confession to make. Over the weekend on saturday, I was in the midst of a battle in my kitchen in the wee hours. The cause that broke the peace at such late night ? An upside-down apple cake. It was'nt just any apple cake. To be exact, it was Rose's upside-down apple cake.

Who is Rose you may ask. She is none other than Rose Levy Beranbaum, a name I have learnt to remember by heart, an established baker and cookbook author. Among her works are The Cake Bible, The Pie and Pastry Bible and last but not least the highly acclaimed Rose's Heavenly Cakes.

Before the cake was done, I was expecting the cake to be good. When I took my first bite into the cake, 'good' was probably an understatement. It was mind-blowing. I was amazed at the ultra-light texture of the sponge and the caramel baked apple top. Lovely~! Once again, I forgot to include an ingredient this time - vanilla. The exclusion of vanilla did not mar my experience. Even without vanilla, the cake had tasted so superb. I helped myself slice after slice and stopped at my third serving. At that moment, I wish I had my camera around. Sorry folks! I will re-cake this soon.

Madeira Cake

It seems like I am on a baking spree this week, having baked for 4 days consecutively in a row. Since the mood of baking was present, I decided to make good use of it. From my tiny little library of aboout 30 bakebooks ( it is still growing), I lifted out this tiny handy booklet called Cakes and Slices and chose the Madeira cake.

When I first baked the Madeira cake, I thought it is just a lemon butter cake. After doing some reading, I found out that the Madeira cake is named after the Madeira wine.  The Madeira cake is a sponge cake commonly flavoured with lemon and is traditionally used in English cookery ( according to Wikipedia).

Based on my last experience, the cake turned out dry but has a nice buttery lemon flavour ( I forgot to man my oven and overbaked for 15 minutes, lol ). Hence, I tweaked the recipe a little and added 4 tablespoons of lemon juice instead. This resulted in a moist lemony cake with extra tang. The tang would linger in the mouth for a moment after the cake is swallowed. I was definitely too generous with the lemon juice.  

The cake did not brown nicely as compared to the previous. One reason could be the reduced amount of sugar and the shorter baking time. It was done in 45 minutes when the recipe stated one hour. My last cake was baked for 1 hr 10 minutes, hence the dry texture. 

One bite into a slice of the cake reveals a firm yet soft texture. However, the extra tang of the lemon juice has snatched the glamour from the butter. Next time I would reduce the amount of lemon juice to balance the butter lemon fragrance.

Madeira Cake ( recipe adapted from Cakes and Slices )

Serving size: 7 inch or 8 inch round cake, 10 -12 slices

Equipment and materials:

1) Stand electric beater/ handheld electric beater or wooden spoon

2) Measuring spoon set
3) Flexible spatula
4) Mixing bowl
5) Wire rack
6) 18cm or 20 cm round pan
7) Flour sieve
8) Parchment/baking paper
9) Brush for oiling pan
10) Food grater for zesting lemon
11) Weighing scale

Ingredients:

180g butter, softened

175g castor sugar

3 eggs, room temperature and lightly beaten

185g self raising flour, sifted

Finely grated zest of 1 lemon (grated over the sugar and rubbed with sugar using hands)

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Method:

Preparing the tin: Line the base of a 18cm or 20cm round pan with parchment/baking paper. Grease the tin with oil or butter.

Preparing the oven: Preheat oven to 160 degrees C.

Creaming the butter: In a mixing bowl, beat butter on low speed until it is creamy. Add sugar rubbed with zest into butter and beat until sugar is evenly distributed. Increase speed to medium and continue to beat until butter mixture is pale and fluffy. Refer to How to Cream Butter for detailed explanations.

Adding eggs and lemon juice to creamed butter: Add beaten eggs to butter in 3 portions. Beat each portion until incorporated before adding the next portion. The butter and egg mixture should be well combined. Next, add lemon juice and mix well.

Adding flour to egg-butter-lemon juice mixture: Add sifted self raising flour in 2 additions, beating the first addition until absorbed before adding the second. After the second addition of flour is absorbed, scrape sides and bottom of mixing bowl with a flexible spatula. Beat for a further 30s  to obtain a smooth and well combined batter. Do not overbeat at this point in time after adding the flour or the cake will be tough.

Baking the cake: Pour batter into prepared cake tin and bake for 45-60 minutes.

Cooling and unmoulding cake: Run a spatula along the perimeter of cake to unmould cake. Cool cake upright on a wire rack.

Notes:

1) Rubbing zest and sugar will release more lemon flavour into the sugar and cake.

2) The taste matures and is even better the following day.

3) To add moisture, the recipe can be tweaked by adding yoghurt, sour cream or milk.