Orange Chiffon Cake

Ingredients:
6 large eggs plus one additional egg white - separated, cover and bring to room temperature
2 1/4 cups sifted cake flour
1 1/4 cups caster sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cups freshly squeezed orange juice (about 2 large oranges)
Orange zest - grated from 2 oranges
1 tsp vanilla essence
3/4 tsp cream of tartar
3 tbsp caster sugar

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 150 degrees Celsius and prepared one 25cm 2-pc ungreased tube pan.
2. Combine and beat flour, sugar, baking powder and salt using your handheld electric mixer or a whisk. Make a well in the center of the dry mixture and add the yolks, oil, juice, zest and vanilla essence. Beat/whisk until no patches of flour visible, about 1 minute. Set aside.
3. In a separate mixing bowl with a whisk attachment, beat the egg whites until foamy and add the cream of tartar. Beat until soft peaks form. Add 3 tbsp caster sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.
4. Using a silicone spatula, gently fold in one spoonful of the egg white into the yolk batter and carefully blend them together. Then fold in the remaining egg white mixture into the batter and blend.
5. Pour batter into the ungreased tube pan and bake for 60 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
6. Immediately after removing the cake from the oven, turn the pan upside down and place it on a flat surface for cooling process. Let the cake cool for about 1- 2 hours before removing it from the pan.

Chocolate Banana Marble Bread

Ingredients:
3 medium very ripe bananas, at room temperature
1/4 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups sifted cake flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup unsifted unsweetened good cocoa powder
3 tablespoon boiling water, plus more if needed
180gm unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 175C. Lightly spray the 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with vegetable oil and line with a parchment paper that extends 1 inch beyond the long edge of both side s of the pan.
2. Peel the bananas and mash them with a fork or using a food processor. Mash or process to a smooth puree. Measure 1 cup of the puree and transfer it to a medium bowl. Add the buttermilk and vanilla and whisk until blended. Set aside.
3. Sift the cake flour, baking soda and baking powder into a medium bowl. Whisk to blend well and set aside.
4. Place the cocoa powder in the small bowl. Pour the boiling water over the cocoa powder and stir until smooth. If it is too thick, add a little water. Set aside.
5. Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat on medium high until the butter is very light and white in colour, about 4-5 minutes. Scrape down the bowl with a silicone spatula.
6. On medium speed, gradually add the beaten eggs, 1 tablespoon at a time. About halfway through, turn the mixer off and scrape down the bowl. Continue adding the rest of the eggs. Scrape the bowl again.
7. On low speed, add one third of the flour mixture. Add half of the banana mixture. Repeat with the flour-banana-flour. Scrape down the bowl and finish blending the batter by hand using a silicone spatula.
8. Transfer half of the batter to a clean medium bowl. Add the cocoa paste and blend well.
9. Drop alternating spoonfuls of dark and light batters into the prepared pan, then marbleize by using a spoon or knife.
10. Bake the cake for 55-60 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
11. Transfer the cake to a wire rack and let it cool completely in the pan. When cool, remove from the pan, peel off the parchment paper and cut slices with a serrated knife.

Note:

To ensure that the cake has an intense burst of banana flavor, be sure to use bananas that are very ripe and soft, with plenty of black spots speckling their skins.

Trailing Botanical Park Putrajaya

Our Putrajaya park trailing continued today with an evening walk in the Botanical Park or Taman Botani in Putrajaya. It is a man made tropical garden which located in Precint 1 and houses all kinds of Malaysian living plants as well as other tropical flora and fauna. 

We started our trail from the Canopy Bridge which is accessible from the park's tourists' center.

Some of wooden planks has already deteriorated, so please be careful

And then we passed by the Heliconia Trail..

A sad looking bananas

We reached at the Vine Garden...not many flowers though...another sad looking garden.

Leaving the Heliconia Trail, we reached the Sun and Palm Garden...the garden is beautiful overlooking the lake and PM's residence.

A nice place to watch the sunset...

Just like any other parks in Putrajaya, the grey colored pathway is for bicycles and prams and the other one is for walkers or joggers.

Going home...another good walk

Breakfast Rolls

Breakfast Rolls

Ingredients:

12 slices of sandwich bread - I used Gardenia Sandwich Bread
6 Cheddar cheese slices - halved
6 slices of chicken meatloaf - halved
Mushroom Filling
Tomatoes & capsicum - diced (optional)

Butter
1 large egg
2 tsp milk

Instructions:
Using a rolling pin, flatten the a slice of bread.
Place a half sheet of the cheese on top of the flattened bread. Put the meatloaf, a tablespoon of mushroom filling and vegetables. Roll up like a swiss roll cake. Set aside. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.

Heat a tablespoon butter in a frying pan over a medium low heat.
Lightly whisk the egg and milk.
Dip the roll into the egg mixture, carefully place it in the frying pan and cook until golden brown.
Repeat with the remaining rolls.


Mushroom Filling 

Ingredients:
1 medium sized yellow onion - diced
4 large sized portabello mushrooms - sliced (you can also use button mushrooms)
Olive oil
1 tbsp butter
Pinch of salt
Pepper

Instructions:

Drizzle some olive oil in a pan over a medium heat.
Add the onion and cook until translucent. Add in the mushrooms, butter, salt and pepper. Cook until the mixture looked a bit dry. Remove from heat.