Spinach Chiffon Cake

Ingredients:

5 egg whites
20 g sugar
1/4 tsp cream of tartar (optional)

40 mL spinach juice (blend handfuls spinach with enough water, filtered off the residue)
40 g sugar
40 mL vegetable oil
4 egg yolks
Pinch of salt

50 g cake flour
10 g corn flour

Method:

Preheat oven to 160 °C.

In a bowl, combine together flours, set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk egg whites and cream of tartar till frothy; gradually add-in sugar and continue whisking till stiff peaks form (I always whisk egg whites first because I use the same whisk for egg yolks mixture later without washing); set aside.

In another large bowl, whisk egg yolk till pale and glossy.

Pour-in oil and spinach juice , quickly whisk till batter is fully incorporated.

Fold-in flours mixtures, few whisk to form homogeneous batter.

Gradually and gently, fold the egg whites mixture into the egg yolks batter.

Pour batter into an non-grease chiffon pan (8 inches) and bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Remove from oven and immediately invert the chiffon pan to cool on a lifted wire rack.

With a flexible thin knife or spatula, loose cake from pan and transfer it from pan onto wire rack; let cool completely before cut into serving size.

Mexican Flan

Ingredients:

4 egg

1 (410 g) evaporated milk

220 mL sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Caramel:

240 mL sugar

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 °C.

To prepare the caramel:

In a saucepan, cook sugar over medium heat until sugar melted and turn golden brown.

Pour the golden brown syrup into ramekin/cupcake cups, set aside to cool slightly.

To prepare the flan:

In a large bowl, whisk eggs into a homogeneous batter by using hand-whisk.

Add-in evaporated milk, sugar and vanilla, continue whisk until smooth.

Pour evenly into the prepared ramekin cups.

Bake in the preheat oven for 1 hour or toothpick insert into center of flan and come out clean on a water bath filled with water level up to 3/4 of the cups wall.

Keep chilled in refrigerator with mold for several hours or till serve.

To unmold flan:

Transfer the flan cups onto a tray filled with shallow warm water for several minutes.

Gently run a thin flexible knife around the flan wall to loosen the flan then invert it onto serving plate.

Banana - Chocolate Zebra Cake

Ingredients:

Banana Batter

2 eggs
110 g sugar
25 g milk
85 g banana (1 banana), pureed
110 g oil
150 g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Chocolate Batter

2 eggs
110 g sugar
110 g milk
110 g oil
2 tbsp coco powder
150 g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Method:

To prepare the banana batter:

In a bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk eggs with sugar till creamy, pale and glossy.

Pour-in banana puree, milk and oil, whisk for a short while to form homogeneous batter.

Fold-in flours mixture and stir to incorporate well, set aside.

To prepare the chocolate batter:

In a bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk eggs with sugar till creamy, pale and glossy.

Pour-in milk and oil, whisk for a short while to form homogeneous batter.

Stir-in coco powder, whisk for a short while to mix thoroughly.

Fold-in flours mixture and stir to incorporate well, set aside.

Preheat oven to 170 °C.

To assemble:

Gradually, scoop a ladle of banana batter into the center of the lined 22cm pan, follow by another ladle of cocoa batter onto the middle of plain batter.

Alternate the two batters topping and layering till finish.

Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Remove cake from oven, let cake cool in pan for 10 minutes.

Run a thin flexible knife or spatula around the pan to loosen the cake, transfer cake onto a plate for serving.

Banana Chiffon Cake II

Ingredients:

4 egg whites
70 g sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar

4 egg yolks
30 g sugar
1/4 tsp salt
40 mL (37-40g) oil

150 g banana (from 2 banana), mashed
75 g plain flour (added 2 tbsp corn flour to make up 75g flour)
1/4 tsp baking soda

Method:

Preheat oven to 170 °C.

In a bowl, combine together flours and baking soda; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk egg whites and cream of tartar till frothy; gradually add-in sugar and continue whisking till stiff peaks form (I always whisk egg whites first because I use the same whisk for egg yolks mixture later without washing); set aside.

In another large bowl, whisk egg yolks, sugar and salt till pale, thick and glossy.

Add-in mashed banana and oil, continue whisking till butter is fully incorporated.

Fold-in flours mixtures, stir-well to form homogeneous batter.

Gradually and gently, fold the egg whites mixture into the egg yolks batter.

Pour batter into ungreased chiffon pan (22cm) and bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Remove from oven and immediately invert the chiffon pan on a lifted wire rack.

Leave to stand until the cake is cool (I left about 2 hours).

With a flexible thin knife or spatula, loose cake from pan and transfer it onto a serving plate.

Baked Peach Yogurt Cheesecake with Cornflakes Crust

Ingredients:

Cornflakes Crust:

1 cup cornflakes, crushed
100 g cream cracker, crushed
80 g butter

Cheesecake Filling:

250 g cream cheese
2½ tbsp (25 g) icing sugar
25 g butter
2½ tbsp plain flour + 1/2 tbsp cornflour or 3 tbsp (25 g) flour
1 egg
2 eggs, yolks and whites separated
3 tbsp (35 g) icing sugar
pinch salt
75 g yogurt
3 halves peaches, sliced thin

Method:

To prepare the crust or base:

Base a 18 cm springform cake pan with parchment paper, set aside.

In a bowl, mix together cornflakes and cracker.

Gradually, add-in butter and mix until the mixture begin to clump together.

Pat crumbs into the bottom of the prepared cake pan.

Keep in refrigerator while preparing cheesecake filling.

To prepare the cheesecake filling:

Preheat oven to 160 °C.

In a large bowl, whisk 2 egg whites with 3 tbsp sugar and salt till soft peak form, set aside.

In a separate large bowl, cream together cheese, butter and 2½ tbsp sugar till pale, light and fluffy.

Fold-in flours mixture, and mix to blend.

Stir-in egg and egg yolks, whisk till smooth.

Pour-in yogurt and mix thoroughly to combine.


Gently, fold-in stiff egg whites and mix to homogeneous batter.

Pour batter into the prepared crust.

Put a tray of shallow hot boiling water into the bottom rack of preheated oven, and bake batter for 1 hour or till puffy, golden brown on surface and center is just slightly jiggly/wobbly.

Turn-off oven and leave the cake cool completely inside the oven for at least 3 hours.

Remove from oven and refrigerate overnight or till ready to serve.

Creamy Broccoli Soup with Croutons

Ingredients:

Croutons

6 cup Baguette/hard bread, cubed
4 clove garlic, mashed
pinch of salt
2 tbsp chopped/dried parsley
1/3 cup olive oil

Soup

1 large head broccoli, washed, stem removed & roughly cut
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, roughly sliced
2 cup water/stock
1½ tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp black pepper
150 ml heavy cream
150 ml milk

Garnish

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 handful broccoli
some water for sprinkling
pinch salt
dash black pepper

Method:

To prepare the croutons:

Preheat oven to 200 °C.

In a large mixing bowl, mix bread cubes with all the ingredients and stir well to coat homogeneously.

Spoon onto a baking tray and spread out evenly into single layer.

Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes and stir occasionally about two times during baking.

Remove from oven and set aside.

To prepare the soup:

In a pot, melt butter in 1 tbsp of oil over medium high heat, saute onion until softened with occasional stirring.

Add-in half of broccoli, and stir for short while.

Pour-in stock and bring to boil.

Reduce heat, cover and let simmer until broccoli is tender.

Add-in the remaining broccoli, cover and simmer for about 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and blend it into smooth puree in several batches (depending on the size of your blender).

Transfer into saucepan/pot, season with salt, pepper and garlic powder, then stir in cream and milk over low heat right before serving.

Garnish with sauteed broccoli and serve with croutons.

To prepare the garnish:

In a saucepan, heat oil over moderate high heat and stir-fry broccoli for shot while.

Sprinkle-on some water, reduce heat and seasoning with salt and pepper.

Cook the broccoli accordingly with occasional stirring.

Coffee-Coconut Cupcakes

 

Ingredients:

150 mL sugar
1 egg
75 g (80 mL) cooking oil
2 tsp baking power
2½ tbsp plain flour
125 mL coconut milk
1½  tbsp soluble coffee powder
2 tbsp dessicated coconut powder

Topping

25 g dark chocolate, melted on double boiler
Some chocolate rice
Some dessicated coconut powder

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 °C.

Line 8 foil cupcake molds with a paper mold each; set aside.

Dissolve coffee powder in coconut milk; set aside.

In a deep bowl, beat egg with sugar till thick, pale and fluffy.

Pour-in oil, beat to incorporate.

Sprinkle-on flour and baking powder and fold into homogenous batter.

Stir-in coffee flavored coconut milk and whisk thoroughly to mix.

Stir-in dessicated coconut powder.

Pour batter evenly into the prepared molds, place on baking tray, bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Remove from oven.

Pour-on pre-melted chocolate on top of each cupcake the sprinkles-on immediately with chocolate rice and coconut powder.

Serves 8.

Lemon Gateau

Ingredients:

Crust

1 ½ cup biscuit crumbs
1/4 cup cornflakes crumbs
1/2 cup peanut crumbs
3 tbsp sugar
90 g butter

Sponge

3 egg whites
3 egg yolks
80 ml sugar
2 tbsp zest of 1 lemon
7 tbsp sugar
30 ml ground almond
45 ml fine semolina flour
45ml cake flour
25 ml lemon juice

Lemon Custard

Zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 eggs, lightly beaten
110 g sugar
60 g butter
1 tsp cornstarch

Method:

To prepare the crust:

Base a 18 cm springform cake pan with parchment paper, set aside.

In a bowl, mix together all dry crust ingredients.

Gradually, add-in butter and mix until the mixture begin to clump together.

Pat crumbs into the bottom of the prepared cake pan.

Keep covered in refrigerator while preparing cake filling.

To prepare the sponge:

Preheat oven to 180 °C.

In a large bowl, whisk egg whites till stiff peaks form; set aside.

In another large bowl, whisk egg yolk with sugar and lemon zest till pale and glossy.

Stir-in lemon juice till batter is fully incorporated.

Fold-in all the remaining dry ingredients, stir to form homogeneous batter.

Gradually and gently, fold the egg whites mixture into the egg yolks batter.

Pour batter onto the prepared crust base and bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean and golden.

Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

To prepare the lemon custard:

Mix all the custard ingredients into a small pot and heat over medium heat with stirring for 10 minutes or till sugar dissolved.

Reduce heat and let simmer to thicken the custard into a spreadable consistency.

Pour the custard all over the surface of the prepared cake and chill to set or till serve.

To serve:

With a flexible thin knife or spatula, loose gateau from side pan and release springform side.

Carefully transfer it onto a serving plate.

Marbled Butter Cake

Ingredients:

1 ⅓ cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup cornstarch
1/3 tsp baking powder
150 g (3/4 cup) butter
110 g (3/4 cup) sugar
1/3 tsp salt
1 tbsp vegetable oil
3 eggs

3 tbsp milk or (3 tbsp milk powder + 4 tbsp water)
3 tbsp Milo powder + 4 tbsp water or (10 g coco powder + 5 g icing sugar + 2 tbsp milk)

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 °C.

Lightly grease a loaf pan, dust bottom and side of pan with bread crumbs (or flour) and tapping out excess; set aside.

In a bowl, combine flour, cornstarch and baking powder; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter together with sugar and salt till light and fluffy.

Beat-in oil and egg by egg, then continue beating till pale and fluffy.

Fold-in the dry ingredients.

Divide batter into 2 portions.

One mix with fair milk solution and the other with dark chocolate milk solution.

Spoon-in both batters alternately into the prepared loaf pan and run one bamboo screwer across the batter in zig-zag motion.

Bake batter in the preheated oven for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Remove cake from oven, let cake cool in pan for at least 10 minutes (allow cake to shrink from cake pan).

Run a thin flexible knife or spatula around the pan to loosen the cake.

Transfer cake onto a serving plate and slice to serve.

Polo Buns (菠萝包)

Ingredients:

Bread Dough

240 ml plain flour
1/4 tsp salt
30 ml sugar
1 tbsp beaten egg
1 tsp dried instant yeast
70 ml milk
1 tbsp butter

Polo Pastry

2 tbsp butter
25 ml powdered sugar
pinch of salt
1 tbsp beaten egg
95 ml plain flour

Filling (optional)

2 ½ tbsp butter
1 ¾ tbsp sugar
pinch of salt

Method:

To prepare the bread dough:

In a large mixing bowl, add-in all the dough ingredients and mix with fingertips to combine and detach from side wall of bowl.

Knead generously for about 15-20 minutes or till form smooth and soft skin dough.

Set aside covered with wet kitchen towel to proof for 1 ½ hours or till double in size.

Punch down proofed dough to release entrapped gas, divide dough into 4 portions and set aside to rest for 15 minutes or till use.

To prepare the polo pastry:

In a bowl, beat butter, sugar and salt still pale and fluffy.

Beat-in egg till fully incorporated and grassy.

Fold-in flour and mix well with fingertips.

Divide into 4 portions and set aside till use.

To prepare the filing:

In another bowl, beat butter, sugar and salt till incorporated fully.

Chill in fridge till firm then divide into 4 portions and chill in fridge again till use.

To assembly:

Flatten one portion of bread dough and fill-in a portion of filling.

Wrap up, twist edges firmly to seal and ground the sealing tip onto the dough.

With both hands, shape the dough into proper dough ball, set aside.

Flatten one portion of polo pastry.

Gently lift up the flattened pastry and transfer onto the center of hand palm.

Place-on a filled dough and press the dough toward pastry till all the side walls of the dough being covered by the pastry (filling seal side down).

With both hands, shape the entire bun into ball.

With sharp knife, draw chequer pattern on the pastry surface and set aside to proof for about 1 hour or till double in size.

Brush-on egg wash and bake in a preheated oven at 180 °C for 15 minutes or till golden.

Best serves fresh or reheat it in oven for few minutes on the next day before serving.

Jam/Nutella Crostata (Baked Dessert Tart)

Ingredients:

300 g all purpose flour
150 g butter, chopped
100 - 120 g sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla extract or lemon zest (optional)
150 - 200 g of fruit Jam or Nutella chocolate

Method:

Preheat oven to 190 °C.

Lightly grease a 22 cm cake pan, dust bottom and side of pan with flour and tapping out excess; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking power, salt and butter pieces.

Mix with fingertip to form crumbs.

Add-in egg yolks and knead lightly into combined dough.

Flatten the dough into disc, cover with plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.

With fingertips, press 2/3 of the dough into the prepared pan with slightly height on all edges as wall.

Spread-on enough Jam and fill-in all over the curved surface.

Roll the remaining dough into 1 cm wide strips and arranges them in a crisscross pattern or any of your preference pattern over the Jam.

Bake the crostata for about 40 minutes or until fragrant and golden.

Rich Chocolate Brownies

Ingredients:

300 g dark chocolate, chopped
150 g butter
1 ½ cup brown sugar
1 cup plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
3 egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 °C.

Lightly grease a 20 or 22 cm square pan, dust bottom and side of pan with flour and tapping out excess; set aside.

With double boiler, melt chocolate (I used 200 g of 70% dark chocolate and 100 g of standard dark chocolate) over low heat till smooth (about 10 minutes).

Add-in butter, stir to form smooth batter.

Remove from heat and stir-in sugar till dissolves fully; set aside.

In a bowl, mix together flour with baking powder, cocoa powder and salt.

Add the dry ingredients into the chocolate batter, stir well to mix thoroughly.

Beat-in eggs solution till the batter become thick and glossy.

Pour batter in the prepared pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 25 - 30 minutes (not to over bake, toothpick inserts into the middle of brownies NEVER comes out clean).

Yield 28 squares.

Tuna Quiche

Ingredients:

Base

230 g puff pastry (pasta sfoglia)

Filling

6 (80g) canned tuna, drained
1 onion, chopped, boiled and mashed
3 egg, lightly beaten
3 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tsp garlic powder
salt to taste (canned tuna is salty)

Method:

Preheat oven to 190-200 °C.

Roll out puff pastry together with the provided parchment paper on a lightly grease pie pan ( 28 cm in diameter); keep in refrigerator till use.

In a large mixing bowl, add-in all the filling ingredients and stir well to incorporate fully.

Spoon the filling mixture into the prepared pie case.

Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes, or until filling is lightly set or till surface is browned as prefer.

Best serve warm or at room temperature for party.

Peach Cake

Ingredients:

2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup butter
1 tsp salt
1 ½ cup sugar
3 eggs
2 tbsp milk
2 cup sliced peaches
1/4 cup oil

Method:

Preheat oven to 190 °C.

Lightly grease a cake pan ( 18 cm in diameter), dust bottom and side of pan with bread crumbs (or flour) and tapping out excess; set aside.

In a bowl, mix together flour, baking soda and baking powder; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter together with salt and sugar till light and fluffy.

Stir-in eggs one by one and continue beating till pale and fluffy.

Fold-in the dry ingredients.

Add-in milk, oil and then fold in peaches.

Pour batter in the prepared pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Remove cake from oven, let cake cool in pan for at least 10 minutes (allow cake to shrink from cake pan).

Run a thin flexible knife or spatula around the pan to loosen the cake.

Transfer cake onto a serving plate and ready to serve.

Pandan-Coconut Flavored Fortune Cookies

Ingredients:

1 egg white
1/4 tsp pandan essence
1 ½ tbsp vegetable oil
4 tbsp all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp cornstarch
4 tbsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1 ½ tsp coconut milk

Method:

Preheat oven to 150 °C.

Beat egg white, pandan essence and oil till foamy but not stiff.

Add-in flour, cornstarch, sugar and salt, stir till smooth.

Gradually stir-in coconut milk just till blended.

Generously grease a baking tray and drop a teaspoonful batter for each cookies.

Swirl the tray to spread out batter round evenly.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes or till 1/2 inch of outer edges become brown.

Remove one cookie from oven with spatula or metal spoon.

Quickly fold cookie into half, crease the center of cookie over edge of cup and hold the shape by placing the cookies inside a cup as it cools.

Yields about 25 cookies.

Mixed Vegetables Quince

Ingredients:

Pastry:

150 g all-purpose flour
75 g butter, cut to small pieces
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
enough water to blind

Filling:

2 cup cooked string bean, green peas and carrot
1 big onion, boiled/sauteed
1 cup(100 g) grated parmigiana cheese
3 eggs, beated
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp salt or to taste

olive oil, bread crumb and oregano for sprinkling

Method:

To prepare the pastry:

In a large bowl, mix together flour, butter and salt till crumbly (not to over-mix).

Add-in egg and slightly knead to smooth dough.

Gradually add-in enough water to blind dough if the dough still appear crumbly after the egg.

Shape dough into ball, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes.

To prepare the filling:

In a large bowl, mix-well all the filling ingredients, set aside.

To assembly the quince:

Preheat oven to 200 °C.

Roll out the chilled dough into thin sheet, transfer it into a small baking tray and press to form firm base.

Spoon-in the prepared filling.

Sprinkle-on enough olive oil, followed by bread crumb and oregano.

Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes or till set.

Bak Kwa (肉干)

Ingredients:

450-500 g ground pork (not lean)

Marinate:

3/4 tbsp fish sauce
3/4 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 cup sugar or to taste
1/2 tsp five spiced powder
1/4 tsp licorice powder
1/2 tsp white pepper
1/2 tbsp oil
1 tbsp cooking wine
1/4 tsp salt
1 ½ tbsp honey

Method:

In a container, mix pork with all the marinate ingredients, stir-well to fully incorporate.

Place pork in fridge covered to marinate overnight.

Preheat oven to 100 °C.

Line a baking tray (dimension about 25 x 42 cm) with parchment paper.

Spread the marinated pork portion by portion onto the prepared baking tray as thin as possible (important).

Bake it in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes or till firm to touch (test with fork).

Remove from oven and absorb-off any excess oil with paper towels.

Cut the partially cooked pork sheet into smaller rectangular pieces.

Grill each over medium heat for about 10 minutes or till shrink and cooked thoroughly.

Chocolate-Milo Doggie Cookies

Ingredients:

Milo Dough:

1 cup butter
1/2 cup icing sugar
1/2 cup milo powder
2 cup flour
1/4 cup corn flour

Chocolate Dough:

1/3 cup butter
1/2 cup icing sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened chocolate powder
2/3 cup flour
1 tbsp corn flour

70 pieces chocolate rice

Method:

Line a baking tray with parchment paper; set aside.

To prepare the milo dough:

In a large bowl, cream butter and icing sugar together till creamy.

Add-in milo powder, whisk to incorporate fully.

Gradually stir-in flour and corn flour to form dough.

Divide dough and shape it into small balls, set aside.

To prepare chocolate dough:

In another bowl, cream butter and icing sugar together till creamy.

Add-in chocolate powder, whisk to incorporate fully.

Gradually stir-in flour and corn flour to form dough; set aside.

Preheat oven to 140 °C.

Each small ball of milo dough, insert two chocolate rices to form eyes.

Take two enough portions of chocolate dough, shape it into log and attach on both sides to form ears.

Take another smaller portion of chocolate dough, shape it round to form nose in the center.

Place shaped cookies onto the prepared tray.

Bake cookies in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or till fragrant and firm to tough.

Remove cookies from oven, transfer onto wire rack and set aside to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

Yields about 35 cookies.

Streusel Coffee Cake

Ingredients:

Streusel:

1 cup finely grounded cornflakes
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup r0asted salted peanut, grounded
1/2 cup (90 g) butter, mellted

Cake batter:

2 cup cake flour
1 cup sugar
4 tbsp instant coffee powder
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
1 cup milk

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 °C.

Lightly grease a cake pan ( 18 cm in diameter), dust bottom and side of pan with bread crumbs (or flour) and tapping out excess; set aside.

To prepare the streusel topping:

In a bowl, combine grounded cornflakes, sugar, peanuts and butter.

Stir to mix and form crumbs; set aside.

To prepare cake batter:

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, coffee powder, baking powder and salt, stir to mix.

Add-in butter, eggs and milk, whisk until the mixture is smooth and glossy (about 2 minutes).

To assembly:

Pour half of the batter into the prepared cake pan.

Sprinkle with half of the streusel crumbs.

Pour-in the remaining batter over the streusel layer.

And sprinkle-on the remaining streusel onto the batter layer.

Bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Remove cake from oven, let cake cool in pan for at least 10 minutes (allow cake to shrink from cake pan).

Run a thin flexible knife or spatula around the pan to loosen the cake.

Transfer cake onto a serving plate and ready to serve.

Chocolate-Coffee Gateau with Favored Ricotta Cream Frosting

Ingredients:

Chocolate Sponge

40 mL cake flour
1/2 tbsp corn flour
1/4 tsp baking powder (optional)

1 egg white
pinch of cream of tartar (optional)
3 tbsp sugar

40 mL milk/water with 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
2 ½ tbsp sugar
pinch of salt

1 egg yolk
20 mL vegetable oil

Coffee Sponge

40 mL cake flour
1/2 tbsp corn flour
1/4 tsp baking powder (optional)

1 egg white
pinch of cream of tartar (optional)
3 tbsp sugar

40 mL milk/water with 2 tbsp instant coffee powder
2 ½ tbsp sugar
pinch of salt

1 egg yolk
20 mL vegetable oil

Nutella-Coffee Butter Sponge (Base Layers)

125 g butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tbsp Instant coffee powder
1 tbsp nutella
4 tbsp milk
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1 ⅓ cup cake flour
2 tbsp corn flour
3/4 tsp baking powder

Method:

Chocolate Sponge

Preheat oven to 170 °C.

In a bowl, combine together flours and baking powder; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk egg white and cream of tartar till frothy; gradually add-in sugar and continue whisking till stiff peaks form (I always whisk egg white first because I use the same whisk for egg yolk mixture later without washing); set aside.

In a cup of warm milk, dissolve-in cocoa powder, sugar and salt; set aside.

In another large bowl, whisk egg yolk till pale and glossy.

Stir-in oil and chocolate solution, continue whisking till batter is fully incorporated.

Fold-in flours mixtures, stir-well to form homogeneous batter.

Gradually and gently, fold the egg white mixture into the egg yolk batter.

Pour batter into a baking paper layered cake pan (18 cm) and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Remove from oven and let cool completely before assembly.

With a flexible thin knife or spatula, loose cake from pan and invert onto a serving plate for layered cake assembly.

Coffe Sponge

Preheat oven to 170 °C.

In a bowl, combine together flours and baking powder; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk egg white and cream of tartar till frothy; gradually add-in sugar and continue whisking till stiff peaks form (I always whisk egg white first because I use the same whisk for egg yolk mixture later without washing); set aside.

In a cup of warm milk, dissolve-in coffee powder, sugar and salt; set aside.

In another large bowl, whisk egg yolk till pale and glossy.

Stir-in oil and chocolate solution, continue whisking till batter is fully incorporated.

Fold-in flours mixtures, stir-well to form homogeneous batter.

Gradually and gently, fold the egg white mixture into the egg yolk batter.

Pour batter into a baking paper layered cake pan (18 cm) and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Remove from oven and let cool completely before assembly.

With a flexible thin knife or spatula, loose cake from pan and invert onto a serving plate for layered cake assembly.

Nutella-Coffee Butter Sponge

Preheat oven to 180 °C.

Lightly grease a cake pan ( 18 cm), dust bottom and side of pan with bread crumbs (or flour) and tapping out excess; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk butter and sugar till pale, thick and glossy.

Add eggs, one at a time and whisk until homogeneous batter forms.

Add-in coffee powder, nutella, milk and cocoa powder, whisk to fully incorporated.

Add-in flours and baking powder, whisk thoroughly.

Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Remove cake from oven, let cake cool in pan for at least 10 minutes (allow cake to shrink from cake pan).

Run a thin flexible knife or spatula around the pan to loosen the cake, invert cake onto a plate and assembly as desired.

Ricotta Cream Frosting

250 g ricotta cheese
125 g icing sugar

Whisk thoroughly cheese with sugar until homogeneous cream resulted.

3 tbsp cream and fresh fruits / 3 tbsp cream and 1 tbsp fruits jam / 3 tbsp cream and 1 tsp instant coffee with 2 tbsp sultanas / 3 tbsp cream and 2 tsp cocoa powder