Another Baking Week!

This week I've a small order to bake on Saturday but between now and then I plan to make some cream puffs and eclairs.  I'll try out my old custard recipe and buttercream as well.  My daughter loves profiteroles which is cream puffs (without the cream or custard) and good old ICE CREAM!

Jolene and Chai Meng's brand new baby Qi Zhe.

Alethea and I visited Jolene on Sunday at the hospital and brought chocolate cupcakes for her to serve to her visitors.  She looks really good, doesn't she?

Check back later in the week and hopefully I'll have photos of my cream puffs, profiteroles and eclairs!

A New Mummy and Daddy

A few weeks ago, our church's dance ministry members gave J and CM a baby shower at my place and had great fun. So it was with great joy when we received news of Baby's arrival on Friday. Our family will be visiting them today and I baked some chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese frosting so they can share with their friends and family when they visit them at the hospital. Here are some photos:

The baby shower at our place.  All of us were wearing "necklaces" made from baby clothes, socks and bibs!  Of course J and CM got to bring home all the necklaces as they were part of a gift from my family to them.

Alethea has great fun making a "stork" out of gift wrap to hang in the living room.  She also helped to make the decorations.

Here's the chocolate cupcakes I baked.  I added chocolate chips and white chocolate inside.  The topping was a light cream cheese frosting with blue and red sprinkles (for boy) and Hershey's chocolate chips.  A

I gave them 16 cupcakes in a box.  I hope it's enough! 

Congratulations, J and CM on the arrival of your first baby!  Have a great time parenting him!

Cupcakes for Ordering

Yesterday I baked "Resistance is Futile" for my friends and had very good feedback.  Thanks, guys!  You know who you are!  Some of you are wondering what kinds of cupcakes I bake and how you can order them.  Here's a list of what's available:

"Resistance is Futile" - triple chocolate with a surprise centre.  Dense, moist and rich.  For the chocoholic! 

     Plain cupcakes (recommended) - $3 each with a minimum order of 18.

     Butter frosting (plain or coloured) - $3.50 each with minimum order of 18.

American Carrot Cupcakes - freshly grated carrots, walnuts, pineapples chunks, black raisins, muscovado sugar, vegetable oil instead of butter.  Moist and healthy.  Low fat cream cheese frosting. Choice of sprinkles, chocolate chips, M & Ms or walnuts for topping.

     $3.50 each with minimum order of 18.
     $35 for 9-inch cake minimum order of 2 cakes.
Note: Needs to be refrigerated.

Oreo Cheese Cupcakes - Oreo cookie as the base, cream cheese and oreo bits in the cheesecake.

     $3.50 each with minimum order of 18

Note:  Needs to be refrigerated.

Peach or Apple Crumble Cupcakes - canned peaches or freshly grated Granny Smith apples, vegetable oil instead of butter, raisins, cinnamon and a crunchy topping.  Light and refreshing.

     One fruit - $3 each for a minimum order of 24.

     Mixture of fruits in box - minimum order of 36.

Banana and Banana Orange Cupcakes - ripened bananas, cinnamon, vegetable oil instead of butter, juice from fresh oranges, light Muscovado sugar.  Moist and light. 
     Plain - $3 each with a minimum order of 24.
     Frosting - $3.50 each with a minimum order of 24.

Butter Cupcakes - Vanilla, Coffee, Chocolate, Peppermint chocolate, Orange, Strawberry and Rum n Raisin.  Rich, buttery old-fashioned butter cake recipe.

     Plain - $2 each with minimum order of of 24.

     Butter frosting with choice of sprinkles or chocolate chips - $2.50 each with minimum order of 24.

I also bake Brownies, Pineapple Upside Down cake, Banana Cake, Banana Orange Cake, Orange Cake, traditional Fruitcake (need 4 months' notice!), Cornflake cookies, Chocolate Chip cookies, Coffee cookies, Coconut cookies and heart-shaped Pineapple tarts.  If you have a special request, let me know and I'll see if I can help you with it.

Please email me at rebeccayam@ymail.com with your order at least 5 days in advance. 

For orders of more than 100 cupcakes, I need at least a week's notice.

Free delivery is available for orders above $100 in the north, central and west.

Free delivery is available for orders above $120 in the east.

Orders can be picked up from Woodlands.

Looking forward to baking for you!

Full month cakes!

Today is THE day I deliver the American carrot cakes and red eggs to the S Family.

Here are the photos as promised:

The eggs were hard boiled in vinegar, salt and water, then submerged in red food dye mixed with hot water for about 3 seconds.

This is the 9-inch cake.  I didn't want the red eggs rolling around in the box, so I taped the small muffin cases to the side of the box and dropped in the eggs!

Here's the 5-inch cake with Hershey's mini chocolate chips.

I found some cute ribbons for the occasion.  Here's a pink and purple one with Precious Baby girl on it.

The second cute ribbon have tiny footprints!  SO cute!

I hope the S Family likes them.  Happy one month, Aletheia!!

Cupcakes for Friends

I baked some American carrot cupcakes with Cream Cheese frosting last night for my friends today.  Surprisingly most people like Hershey's chocolate chips on the light, fluffy frosting.  They seem to go quite well together.  I cut down on the brown sugar in the cake so the sweet frosting is a welcome companion.

Here are the 12 cupcakes boxed up.  I used Hershey's mini chocolate chips.

All done up with a lovely blue metallic ribbon and ready to go.  I hope my friends like the cupcakes!

The carrot cakes for J and D have been duly baked and in the refrigerator waiting to be iced tonight.  I'll be cooking the red eggs tomorrow morning and then off to deliver the goodies after lunch.

Check back next week for more photos!

Red Eggs

According to Chinese customs, when a baby turns one month old, a ceremony is held to celebrate her first full moon. This also coincides with the end of the mother's confinement period, and both mother and baby are formally introduced for the first time. Relatives and friends gather to give their blessings and gifts to the new baby, and traditional treats such as ang ku kueh and red eggs are featured.

This weekend I'll be making red eggs and American carrot cakes for J and D's baby's full month celebrations.  I thought I'd try one of the recipes I found on the internet.  First I boiled the eggs with water, vinegar and salt, using the same method for making hard boiled eggs.  Vinegar and salt are supposed to dissolve the waxy covering on eggs and make absorption of the red food colouring easier.  While the eggs were hot I took them out of the boiling water and submerged them in a red colouring I had prepared earlier.  Then I took the eggs out and wiped them dry with a kitchen paper towel and left them to cool.  I then added a ribbon.

Now I'm off to check on my cakes!

One-month celebrations for Aletheia S

J, D and Emma S will be celebrating their beautiful baby/sister Aletheia's first month in the family next weekend.  I've been given the privilege to bake a few American carrot cakes for this occasion.  D also wanted some plastic boxes to pack the traditional ang ku kuey and red eggs so I got these for her.

The carrot cakes will be miniature 5-inch cakes complete with cream cheese frosting and walnuts.  I'm still thinking if I should do the colourful sprinkles since it's a celebration cake.  What do you think, D?  Colourful sprinkles or just Hershey's chocolate chips?

Can't wait to get started!  Must remember to take lots of photos to share with you!

Meanwhile, have a great weekend!  And congratulations again, J, D and Emma!