Jo Bakes

Horlicks Doggy Biscuits

2009-10-06T21:19:00.003+08:00

These biscuits are really fun to make and taste so good sis and I finished all within two days. I love to bite the ear off first then slowly munch away the head. Haha. I will use unsalted butter the next time though because these were a little too salty for my taste. Still, I had such a good time making these with the sister than I think the hard work making those expressions was worth it. Don't these little cuties make good gifts?

Orange Choco Muffins

2009-09-12T13:07:00.002+08:00

I will always be in love with the combination of chocolate and orange because of the sweet-citrusy blend. Somehow, the colors of the muffins looks good too.

I added a small cube of dark chocolate in the middle of these but I think I would rather add more chunks of them or chips instead. Never scrimp on the chocolate for extra awesomeness!

18 July 09

2009-08-31T22:56:00.000+08:00

These muffins are addictive! They are super light and easy on the stomach without all the grease of the butter. I was supposed to use earl grey tea leaves but since I have that random box of peach and mango teabags lying around since forever, I thought I would use up a couple of them for this recipe.

The taste was definitely something new in the kitchen, which was a good thing! After making one too many chocolate bakes, something new and light is great for a change. I can easily munch more than one easily and they are perfect with a warm cup of milk tea.

17 July 09

Peanut Butter Cookies

2009-07-18T12:31:00.006+08:00

This is easy peasy as ABC. Just mix the three ingredients together, roll them into tiny marbles on the baking sheet. Press down with a fork and send them into the oven.

I made some chewy and also crunchy ones. Little addictive stuff though, you have been warned!

11July

Milo Flourless Layer Cake II

2009-07-15T12:36:00.000+08:00

This is officially the mom's favorite cake.
I can see why; it's not too sweet but is tasty enough to go with the mid-afternoon cup of coffee.
The mom is surprised that there is not one bit of flour used in the entire recipe.
She is demanding I make this diligently every weekend.
I made this 2 days in a row - one with two and the other three layers.

Milo Flourless Layer Cake II

2009-07-11T15:46:00.002+08:00

28 June 09

This is officially the mom's favorite cake.
I can see why; it's not too sweet but is tasty enough to go with the mid-afternoon cup of coffee.
The mom is surprised that there is not one bit of flour used in the entire recipe.
She is demanding I make this diligently every weekend.
I made this 2 days in a row - one with two and the other three layers.

Mocha Cupcakes

2009-06-30T15:20:00.000+08:00

Birthday coffee-chocolate cupcakes for the mom!

I am really please with this batch because everything came out well and consistent.
First time using ground almond in the batter and it really adds flavor and bite.
I polished off a couple once they were fresh out of the oven!
Splurging on good Cadbury dark chocolate was a good idea indeed too. I had a few squares left for some munching (not intentionally).
The whole lot was gone fast and the sister is asking for more already hehe.
These are so addictive that I think I should wait for a few more weeks before a second attempt.
I love biting off the crusty tops first and then work my way down. HA!

At least I don't have a touch a single oreo making these...

Triple Berry Muffins

2009-06-24T16:14:00.000+08:00

For the Ah Pa.
健康财富佳！

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies II

2009-06-16T09:29:00.000+08:00

Matcha Oreo Muffins

2009-06-14T04:09:00.000+08:00

I finally utilized the jar of matcha powder hidden in one corner of my baking supplies basket. Can't recall how much I threw into the mixture but the flavor came out right. So the matcha oreo muffins are a mixture of oreo crumbs, green tea flavor plus gooey chocolate chips. I must get my hands on some azuki next...

Plus, made some oreo muffins for my cousin who turns 16. I knew I mentioned no more oreo in the pantry again but he loves it and the sister managed to psycho me into making more again. If I were to touch one oreo sandwich within a month, I swear I will cry.

Milo Flourless Layer Cake

2009-06-11T07:52:00.000+08:00

~~HDB Tai Tai~~ Domestic Goddess still in the making.

It's not that moi would rather stay at home and bum around but, I am still waiting for news for my temp job! Honestly, I am actually hoping it will come around slowly so that I can still enjoy sleeping in late but then... no work = no money = no flour! So, see how it goes la.

12 June is rolling in and my application form is not done yet! So nervous my nails are all bitten chipped already!

Meanwhile, I made this cake as requested by the mom. She is clearly addicted to at and I foresee this gone within the next two days. The cake is steamed but then I am thinking it is not any less sinful than baked muffins because the recipe called for quite an amount of gula and butter. Butter smells like dog poo but makes everything so delicious.

I actually made this on the 30th May before but was too occupied to blog about it.

I wish I have more pictures of the pretty pretty layers but then my 2mp camera phone is quite a let-down so till I get my hands on a better camera, make do!

Oreo-Nutella Muffins

2009-06-10T10:57:00.000+08:00

In a desperate attempt in differentiating the oreo muffins that I have made SO MANY DAMN times previously, I dumped a dollop of good o' nutella in the middle of these beauties. Don't worry, I jojotee assured that the next time you see me bake, it will have nothing to do with the black and white sandwiches. No more oreo, dear sister! We should start making new things or else people will be bored. Nothing beats a little variety! 6-muffins itch? I better start making new ones or else you also stray. So I have collected recipes for stout muffins (hic!), carrot spice, cheese muffins... Now, just to make a trip to the mart and buy some more flour and sugar. Woohoo!

Oreo Muffins III

2009-05-29T14:47:00.000+08:00

17 May 2009
Sigh, I just love making these and my sister just loves ordering these.

Very simple to make plus makes the kitchen smells good for the entire weekend. Oh, and seeing them just takes the whole week of stress away. ;]

Oreo/ Nutella/ F&N

2009-05-22T13:44:00.000+08:00

Oh, I made all these on last Sunday itself.

OREO MUFFINS
specially requested by the sister, which is so rare because she is not a fan of bakes.

NUTELLA BREAD PUDDING
with much much more nutella this time. YUM.

SODA EGG STEAMED CAKE
Anyone can make this! It's very simple and the idea of making something out of soda is very fascinating. I used F&N orange!

Whoohoo the weekends are here!

Walnut Muffins

2009-04-26T15:17:00.000+08:00

13 Apr 09

The initial plan was to make some jam muffins because the jam is going to expire but I could not resist making these after seeing that bag of fresh walnuts Mom bought home. Plus, she is such a fan of walnuts I know she will go crazy seeing these out of the oven. The GL-sis left her mapleworld for a few minutes and helped!

I love all the brown and crispy crusts. I cannot resist thinking how they would be if coupled with chocolate or some fruity element inside...

Nutella Bead Pudding

2009-04-26T14:42:00.000+08:00

13 April 09

Let Jojotee teach you how to make your own bread pudding.

Whisk...

Looks yummy and full of protein but do not be gila to drink it.

Make sure you have the following...

I think cutting into cubes will be a better idea.

I got my oven-proof ramekin at Daiso!

...and it will look like this!

Ta-dah!

Yummy!

Orange Almond Baby Cups

2009-04-15T12:12:00.000+08:00

10 April 09

There are too many baked goods lying around in the kitchen for my own good.

I have to admit these baby cakes, as I like to call them, turned out rather a little last-minute and bad for sweetie's 22nd birthday present. It did not seem to help how I woke up early to grab some OJ and heat up the oven, but still, ended up with some weird little butter-pots instead. They were right, better stick to the recipe next time!

Till now, I have no idea what was wrong with me to reduce the amount of flour, which caused the presence of butter to be too overpowering to make them presentable for sweetie. I felt like I was biting into softened butter mixed with orange bits.

I kept these although I was real bummed meeting sweetie empty-handed that afternoon. A few hours later, the butter sort of settled and they were more or less easier to stomach although I have to say these are real sinful than the usual butter cakes. They were really fragrant actually. The almonds add a nice crunch to the tartness of the citrus fruit while the chocolate chips went perfectly when they go all gooey.

I am going to try these again pretty soon.

Huat Kuey & 鸡蛋糕

2009-04-13T10:55:00.000+08:00

4 April 09

Before you proceed to laugh...

Yeah, I made Huat Kuey. Heehee. You know, it's nice to make something quite different for a change.

Dad says if they're nice, I can make them twice a month as offerings to guanyin (he was just joking I'm sure). Mom was perhaps tired of seeing me churn out muffin after muffin after each time I slog in the kitchen, and hinted she's sick of being my guinea pig.

Huat Kuey was hence requested! Hmm, I wonder why I have not thought of making these for her before. I mean, huat kuey is real simple to make, even for a blur like me who cannot tell the difference between baking soda and baking powder. With the premix I got from Redman (which I have conveniently failed to remember how much it cost), I just need to sweeten the whole deal with coconut milk. Mix, scoop into cups, steam, and voila... the mom is happy.

Once again, I must express my looove for my mixer. Hmm, I should start thinking of a name for it.

The coconut milk is key in making them shiok, but like what bengua also agree, it was simply overpowering. Still, I thought that the idea of chocolate chip version was rather ingenious and cute. I would have never thought of that... Only one choc chip one ok.

While I was actually waiting for these stuff to huat in the steamer, mom was actually clearing her kitchen cabinets and holy moly, discovered her very yellow and ancient recipe books.

There is a recipe for "鸡蛋糕" inside and the ingredients look fairly simple so made this block a the same time. It was after the whole thing was done that I realized this is what 鸡蛋糕 looks like.

This contains a whole load of sugar, but it is super addictive and delicious! This is not the most appetizing thing, but trust me, I was quite hooked on it. How nice it would be to bring the whole block to the cinema and chew my way through the movie. Hehe. The texture is just right, and the taste reminds me of waffles and 鸡蛋仔. The fragrant smell of eggs and sugar...

Oreo Muffins II

2009-04-05T02:03:00.000+08:00

24 March 09

These were initially part of the oatmeal chocolate cookies for the class on the last day of lecture but were quite a disaster to make an appearance. Due to my own kan cheong-ness over the time constraints plus me being very tired after making the cookies that night, the batter was over mixed and the whole chunk did not turn out very tasty... But still, here they are. Didn't they say it was the effort that counts? Hehe.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

2009-04-02T16:49:00.000+08:00

24 March 09

These were made for the last day of the last module on last Wed. I was in the supermarket with the gang and Qingren picked the Oatmeal Choc Chip mix so these came about. Initially, I was rather skeptical about the part about oatmeal but I love the texture in the end. Not sure how much those who tried liked them, but they pretty much were wiped out fast in the house. Well, you cannot go wrong with Betty Crocker's mix I guess.

Oreo Muffins

2009-03-23T14:36:00.000+08:00

What's a better thing to do other than bake ♥ on a 13th Friday? The day went well I guess, other than gorging myself one too many of these at the end of the day because they were so good! Haha. I sound so BHB but then, I love this new recipe I dug out online because they have lighter taste and easier on the stomach, especially if you are like me who lovessss my oreos and cannot resist stopping at one. I am officially an oreo addict.

Ingredients:
(makes 6 muffins)

2oz butter, soften @ room temperature
35g caster sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
105g plain flour (all purpose flour)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup fresh milk
1/2 cup oreo cookie chunks

Method:
Preheat oven to 190 degC.
With an electric mixer, cream butter until soft.
Add in sugar and beat until light and fluffy.
Add in the egg gradually. Beat well each time egg is added.
Sift flour and baking powder. Fold flour mixture into the butter mixture, alternating with the milk.
Fill each muffin cup/liner with batter till half full. Sprinkle several oreo cookie chunks on top, then cover with a spoonful of batter.
Bake for 25 mins, until lightly browned. Cool the muffins in the pan for 5 mins before transfering to a wire rack to cool.

I spent about half an hour beating the butter and sugar till soft and fluffy and my hands were jelly at the end. How relieved I am that I got a mixer now because it was so tough trying to make it soft beating the two by hand. It takes lots of time and patience. Instead of sprinkling several oreo cookie chunks in the cupcake as per instructions, I was lazy and just threw half a cookie inside and immediately regretted this dumb dumb decision when I cut the baked muffin into half. The small thin strip of the cookie could hardly be seen! Of course, the cookie and cream taste that I wanted was too light as well.

I still had lots of frosting left (that jar has great mileage by the way) so made use of it. I attempted to do the curly ala 'shit' effect with the frosting on the muffins but they collapsed and made quite a mess! Shucks. But still, I'm quite happy with the end result. Looking at the chocolatey muffins and the smell of the kitchen post baking makes me so happy and pleased. I had three decorated ones and since Ivan and CY came for mahjong that night, I decided to brave the criticisms and shared those. Yes yes, there is definitely still room for improvement. :)

Tomorrow sounds like a nice day to bake since it has been about a week since I touched the oven and mom thought I lost interest already. Time is not on my side though, I have the mixer and a new box of oreos ready but the memo is due on Tue so hopefully I can complete it fast and start making these to share again! Oh, and a second trip to Daiso after school was fruitful with very kawaii molds fit to withstand the high oven temperatures and also spotted a ramekin dish for my nuetella bread pudding project.

I have lots of stuff to update...

Blueberry Muffins

2009-03-23T13:58:00.000+08:00

15March09

How should I describe these? Hmm, they sound so boring but were more delish than the oreo ones because of the jam which were more flavorful and teased my taste buds more. Chocolate and 'heavy' stuff like cream and milk attract me more but sometimes I appreciate the lightness fruity flavors give. I have no idea what to doodle on top so just drew a large dot with the jam. Actually the reason why I ended up with these was because I happened to spot a jar of of blueberry jam in my fridge which has gone untouched by everyone in the family for months, and wanted to clear it. So, these few odd muffins were sort of an "accident" - totally unplanned. They proved how versatile the muffin recipe was though! I am definitely going to bake this again, for bright sunny mornings with a good book, and also to clear the jam...

Chocolate Chip Cookies

2009-03-18T13:29:00.000+08:00

These cookies were made when I was incredibly bored last Friday (the second 13th Friday this year BTW) plus thought of giving something handmade for the aunt who was celebrating her birthday the next day. The Daiso heart molds finally made an appearance! I am still looking for more cookie molds but have no idea where to get them, yet. The heart shapes did not come out perfect though... because after the cookies cooled, I had to actually "trim" them with a pair of scissors. Hehe.

After collecting some opinions from various friends, I realized that there is actually an equal mix of people who are in either "pro-chewy" or "pro-crunchy" cookies camps. Maybe except for bawan who cannot make up his mind and wants to be in both. Moi personally prefer the chewy cookies ala Subway's and Pepperridge. Chewy ones are just nicer to bite into to me and maybe they bite more like cakes. The crunchy ones reminds me of Famous Amos ones which were really so so wonderful I am having super cravings lately already. Since there are demand for both kinds, I made both! Somehow the crunchies made the kitchen smell better, you know... the buttery chocolatey goodnessy smell.

Anyway, I made these using the very trusty Betty Crocker's cookie mix. After using the Double Chocolate twice, I tried the Chocolate Chip mix this time and they turned out real well as expected. They promised 300 chips inside the pouch and well, I cannot vouch for that but I must say the chips were enough for me and tasted real nice. The freshly baked cookies disappeared real fast into my stomach cos I could not resist the hot, chewy cookies with the gooey chips once they come out of the oven! Cookies must be eaten hot and fresh so, I was literally eating them from the baking sheet and baking new ones at the same time. Of course, I ended up with a small batch. -_-

There was still quite some Betty Crocker's chocolate frosting left from my last baking attempt and why let it go to waste? I doodled on the hearts and drew alphabets of names of some close peeps on them, and then sprinkled on top with the rainbow dots. It was quite a chore, but I pretty like the results. Only that I did not give out the cookies to those peeps in the end though...

I got to try making cookies from scratch next time, plus make some nutty cookies... and white chips cookies!

Milo Choc Chip Muffins

2009-03-11T19:16:00.000+08:00

It was 7 pm+, and I was experiencing the post-dinner boredom after my xxth round on Guess The Sketch on facebook. The sudden impulse to do some baking hit me so... I ran through my list of recipes and this one caught my attention. It seemed interesting and simple enough, and I ended my night with these.

Milo Choc Chip Muffins

Ingredients(makes 9 big muffins)

270g self-rising flour
30g Milo
1 teaspoon baking powder
55g butter
80g sugar
150g milk or semisweet chocolate chips
2 eggs, lightly beaten
225ml milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 200 deg C. Grease a 12-cup muffin pan or line with paper muffin cups.
2. Mix the flour, Milo and baking powder in a large bowl.
3. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles bread crumbs.
4. Stir in sugar and chocolate chips.
5. In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk and vanilla extract. Pour the mixture all at once into the dry ingredients. Mix quickly until just blended. Do not over mix.
6. Spoon batter evenly into the prepared muffin pan and bake for 20mins or until golden brown, and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
7. Cool in the pan for 10mins then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Source

The muffins turned out to be the ugliest and non-appetizing because:

- I substituted all-purpose for self-raising flour, but did not add more baking powder which I should. The muffins did not huat as nicely as I expected in the end. >.< - I ran out of normal milo and had to use milo mocha, which I thought was better, but was not in the end. I am guessing the normal milo will release a stronger cocoa aroma. - I realized I did not have vanilla extract at the last minute and used vanillin powder instead. - Mom thought initial batter was too gooey and suggested adding more flour. Bad move. - I over-mixed as a result.

Still... the chocolate chips were so good especially when they are melted and hot. Great supper with milk in the midnight!

他们很丑, 但是好吃!

Note to self: Sleep early!

Orange Muffins

2009-03-02T09:53:00.000+08:00

Sunday mornings - perfect for brunches with the family, stocking up the groceries at the nearby supermarket without any regard for time, reading the sunday paper with a good cup of kopi.

Only that I missed the Sunday morning, again, with sleep, what else. Still, I had a nice Sunday with satisfying my hokkien mee craving at the mall. Is it just me or has the standard of the mee drop already? They do not fry it like how they used to, it simply lacks something, like a drug that makes me keep going till the last strand of noodle in the past.

Also, I had my grocery shopping since a long time with mom and took the opportunity to stock up on my baby carrots and baking supplies. Gosh, these little things really add up and it was quite bad of me to get so much at one go. Who knows flour, baking powder, cupcake decorations can cost so much. But at least, I did not procrastinate and ended up with these!

Here is the exact recipe to share. I know many people are very free. Try and tell me whether it works for you and can share a cup or two with me hehe.

Orange Muffins
serves 18 small

* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 1 cup sugar
* 1 egg
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon orange extract
* 2/3 cup fresh orange juice

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and line 18 muffin cups with paper liners.
2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Add egg, beat well, then add vanilla and mix.
4. In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt.
5. Mix orange extract with orange juice.
6. Add half the flour mixture to the butter mixture, mix well, then add half the juice mixture and mix; repeat.
7. Spoon batter into prepared cups, sprinkle with some sugar if you want crunchy muffin tops.
8. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.

Notes:
> I have no idea what orange extract is and use orange flavoring instead. Instead of 0.5 tsp of extract, I substituted it with 1.5 tsp of flavoring. I have a feeling they are the same though.

> I used orange juice with pulp but I think a no-pulp consistency will improve the taste. Gah, I hate OJ sans the pulp.

> I had to leave the cups in the oven longer than a mere 30 min, or else they fail the toothpick test.

> Mom commented they were a little too sweet and I had to agree although my sweet tooth was on a high. Because of the extra flavoring I add, I should have drop in a little less sugar in the mix.

> Use smaller cups so that there are more to pass around!

> I did not get the nice smooth texture but an electronic hand whisk should get the task done.

> I used Betty Crocker Hershey's Rich & Creamy Chocolate Frosting. It was great, not too rich. I tested and almost whacked half a jar.

> I'm excited to start making plain muffins to doodle on top of them now!

Initially, I was hesitant to bake these in front of my mom because I was least confident that the muffins will turn up well since this is moi first attempt to use the oven for something other than mere cookies. I kept telling her that this batch will surely fail and that she better not get her hopes up too high. Of course, I am quite happy they turned out pretty OK and dad even take a bite although he absolutely abhors such sweet lil things. Keke.

Time to find/ dig/ steal my camera battery charger! >.<

Double ChocoChunk Cookies

2009-02-13T19:29:00.000+08:00

Procrastination. I should be stuck with MS Word and GMFs today but decided to warm the oven after a long time of leaving it in one corner collecting dust. I should have made these from scratch but forgetful me (what's new) left the house without the recipe, so it was the premix to the rescue. I am "sassified" with this batch I must say. They were of the right shape and texture, but definitely not pretty enough. Sigh.

Yeah, and no momma, they are not for anyone special in particular; sorry for the disappointment.

I had ViVi for company while waiting.

The first batch! (Yeah very KS, first batch only has 2 cookies.)

I found a recipe for "Horlicks Doggies Cookies" thanks to An An. They look super cute and sounds really yummy.

Happy Friday 13th. As usual I can feel a fever coming, as it does every year on this day. I don't fall down while walking, or lose things, or fight with friends, I fall sick. That's not so bad come to think of it.