Thursday, March 29, 2012

Milo cake with lemon curd filling & dark chocolate ganache frosting

Have been searching for a Birthday cake recipe for days and until one day i saw this recipe "Ultimate Milo Cake" from raspberri cupcakes baking blog, now I know I will never have milo that became stone...I had modify the recipe according to self preference. My cake is not a great success, but I would say it is not a big failure either. I believe the whole day i spend in the kitchen for this cake did actually warmth and sweeten my hubby birthday!

P/s: best recommend for people who do not like sweet food :)

Happy Birthday to my hubby @ first birthday after married!

Milo cake                                                             
125g unsalted butter, room temperature
50g caster sugar
195g plain flour (I'm using all purpose flour)
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
150g (about 1 1/4 cups) Milo powder
3 eggs
120ml (1/2 cup) buttermilk
  1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) and grease and line a 20cm round tin.
  2. Cream butter and sugar together until smooth and fluffy. 
  3. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
  4. Sift flour, baking powder and Milo together and then gradually add to the rest of the mixture with the mixer on low speed.
  5. With the mixer still on low, add buttermilk until just combined.
  6. Pour into cake tin and bake for 40-45 minutes and place it on a wire rack to cool completely.
(I would recommend to use a 16cm tin so that the milo cake can be thicker for 3 layers with better outcome appearance)

First row pictures: 1. milo cake 2. lemon curd 3. milo cake with lemon curd filling
Lemon Curd Filling
Because personal preference not to eat raw eggs & finally i found this egg-free lemon curd recipe :) and I love it!

lemon curd
5 tablespoons Unsalted Butter                                                            
1/2 cup milk (I used left over buttermilk for milo cake)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
6 tablespoon granulated sugar (I used granuated brown sugar)
1 teaspoon lemon zest
6 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed

P/s: lemon zest is the outer yellow thin layer. Try not to grate the pith (the white part underneath the zest and it's bitter). Fresh lemon in room temperature is preferred & more juice can be squeezed.
  1. Whisk cornstarch into milk until combined.
  2. Zest and juice lemons and set aside. 
  3. Melt butter in a small saucepan in low heat.
  4. When butter is melted, turn burner up to medium-high and slowly whisk in the milk/cornstarch mixture.
  5. Add granulated sugar to pan and stir to incorporate.
  6. Add lemon zest and lemon juice to the pan and continue to mix until sauce comes to a light boil and sauce thickens.
  7. Cook for 3 minutes more and remove from heat. Cool completely and apply into your cake. (Sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.) 
 (If you plan to do a 3 layers cake, remember to up size your lemon curd ingredient)

lemon curd filling within~

Chocolate Ganache Frosting
12 oz. (340 g) bittersweet, milk or white chopped chocolate
1 2/3 (400 ml) cups heavy cream
Put cream in a sauce pan and heat just before the boiling point. Immmediately pour the cream into the chocolate and let sit it for about 5 minutes.

My initial chocolate ganache is fail & I last minute using emergency methods try to reuse. Tips: If the recipe that you found is chopped chocolate please use chopped chocolate. (I have try to use the Hershey's Cocoa to replace the chopped chocolate, ends up the chocolate proportion is much more greater than my hot cream proportion.)



baking journey 回顾篇

I'm totally new in baking. But I really enjoy the moment of baking, from searching recipe, buying ingredients, baking and until my loved one enjoying the outcome.

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