It's been a long time since i update my blog and this is the first one for year 2017. Have not been really baking since the busy period of Chinese New Year. That was a really busy time for me with the baking, cooking and spring cleaning. I'm so glad that it was over and I managed to squeeze in two short holidays of sightseeing and golf. That was great fun in the company of all the wonderful friends.
Finally got a push to start baking again. In fact, I baked 3 cakes all in all within 3 days. So happy to get that baking zest back and the cakes all turned out beautiful and delicious. Baked my nephew's favourite chocolate cake for his 19th birthday followed by this pure pumpkin cheesecake. This one is for the April babies in my cell group.
A rich and creamy cheesecake taken from Rose Levy Beranbaum's The Cake Bible. I adapted the recipe to include a digestive biscuit base to lend a crunch to the creamy custard. I don't normally bake cheesecake. It's just simply too rich, but delightfully delicious. It's perfectly fine to indulge in it occasionally. I baked this cake for my niece's 13th birthday. No more chocolate cake request from her. Vanilla cheesecake is her new favorite.
Traditional baked cheesecake or Japanese Souffle cheesecake? I was deliberating between which of the 2 to bake for my mother's birthday celebration. The traditional one is more full-flavoured and richer, which will mean bad news for those watching their waistlines and cholesterol level. The Japanese version is lighter and milder, which is just fabulous for the health conscious with a sweet tooth. But I do know of friends who love cheesecake will only stand by the traditional baked cheesecake. In the end, I decided to go with the light Japanese version.
It's a cheese cake but not exactly like those heavy american cheese cake we know. I would say this is a healthier and lighter version. There's more yoghurt than cream cheese. Good news to those who love cheese cakes but are wary of the amount of calories that go into it. It has a tangier taste due to the introduction of yoghurt and lemon juice. I would have preferred it to be a little sweeter. Perhaps I should increase the cream cheese portion to make it 50% cream cheese and yoghurt next time.
This cake looked so lovely, so kawaii. Don't you agree? The base is a Japanese Cotton Cheesecake and beautifully adorned with fresh cream and fruits. This cake is specially made for my daughter's sweet 18th birthday. You see, my daughter is a baker herself and she has requested me to buy her an assortment of petite cakes from Antoinette. She has always wanted to try those pretty cakes (and they sure do look so pretty). You can visit Antoinette to look at their array of cakes. And she actually did not want me to bake a cake coz she said I always bake the same cakes (but I want to perfect my skills in those cakes ....) I guess that's the difference between a youngster who wants to try baking a variety and someone older like me who wants to sharpen her skills and perfect it. I've never baked a Japanese cotton cheesecake (it was a craze many years back) and I wanted to try it this time. She agreed with my choice and I started reading up .....
