How is everything in your world? I am enjoying my full time job, but I really miss baking. I’ve been trying to bake often, but it’s just not easy. Hopefully, I will learn the better way to manage my time after work! Today, I would like to introduce you my ultimate favorite cake of all….”Mocah Chiffon Cake with Fresh Strawberries”!!!! Chestnut Chiffon Cupcake is the small version of enjoying heaven, this is the big version of enjoying heaven!

Again, chiffon cake is my FAVORITE cake of all. Chiffon cake doesn’t have a rich flavor of butter. However, this is such a light and moist cake that everyone can enjoy. Because the cake itself doesn’t have a strong flavor, you can add your favorite flavor to icing (usually Chantilly cream is used) and fruit as topping. In addition, once you’ve got a good recipe that you like, you can make a variety of chiffon cakes by substituting some ingredients. If you are like me, who doesn’t like cakes that are too sweet, this is your kind of cake.

Chiffon cake is not as hard as you’ve heard. You know, all those scary stories about how chiffon cake didn’t raise, chiffon cake sank, etc. Don’t worry about them and just follow steps and tips, you will have a full raised chiffon cake! And, even if you didn’t get it on the first time, don’t be disappointed. You will get it when you try again!

EQUIPMENT & INGREDIENTS

Equipment

1 Stand mixer (or hand mixer)
1 baking/cooking scale
1 10-inch Tube pan (Also known as a Chiffon or Angel food cake pan)
1 Baking pan

Ingredients

For cake
120g egg yolks (6 medium size egg yolks)
90g sugar A.
120g water
120g olive oil
15g coffee extract (espresso)
2g vanilla extract
180g cake flour
7g baking powder
320g egg whites (about 10 medium size egg whites)
120g sugar B.

For chantilly cream
300g heavy cream
30g sugar
5g orange liqueur

For topping
fresh strawberries

HOW TO MAKE

Before You Start

Sift the cake flour and baking powder three times.
Preheat the oven to 300F.

Making Egg Yolk Base

1. Separate egg yolks and whites. The way that I used to separate egg yolks and whites (photo 1) is a very useful method when you have to separate many eggs. See Alexa’s Tip #1. on the bottom for details.
2-3. Put 6 egg yolks in a stand mixer bowl and start beating for about 15 seconds. Then, slowly add sugar A. while beating egg yolks at a medium speed.

4-6. Raise the speed to high and continue beat egg yolks and sugar until the color lightens (about 3-4 minutes). Add water and beat. Then, add olive oil and beat well.

7-8. Add coffee extract and vanilla extract and beat until well mixed.
9. Sift cake flour and baking powder. Add the flour mixture and beat at low speed until you no longer see any powder. Do not over mix. Set the mixture aside in a separate bowl.

Making meringue

10-12. Add 10 egg whites in a bowl and beat at medium speed. When it starts foamy, slowly add sugar B. while it is beating. Then, increase to high speed and continue beat. You want to have medium peak meringue for chiffon cake. If it’s your first time, beat a little bit longer until you have medium and high peak meringue, but make sure not to overbeat.

Folding & Pouring

13-15. Add half of the meringue to the batter and GENTLY fold in using a whisk or rubber spatula. Then, add the rest of the meringue and GENTLY fold in. I like using a whisk because it has less chances to kill air bubbles in meringue.

16. Prepare a tube pan by simply spraying water all around the inside and placing it on the baking pan. This must done before you pour the batter.
17-18. Pour the batter into the tube pan up to 3/4 of the pan. Then, dip a chopstick (or any clean stick) in the batter and go around the pan once or twice to get the air out.

Baking & Cooling

19. Put the ENTIRE pan assemblage in the oven and bake for about 55 minutes. DO NOT OPEN the oven while it is baking.
20. Take the pan out and test with a toothpick after 55 minutes. (You can open the oven now.) If it doesn’t come out clean, bake a few more minutes and check again. Repeat as necessary. When it is done, IMMEDIATELY turn the tube pan upside down and place it on a cooling rack.

Taking Out & Layering

21. Cool the cake completely before take it out of the pan.
22. Run a metal spatula to around the inside of the pan to separate it from the cake. Remove the cake from the side of the tube pan.
23. Run a metal spatula to separate the bottom of the tube pan from the cake.

24. Put the cake board on top of the cake and flip it over.
25. Remove the bottom of the tube pan.
26. Slice the cake in three layers.

Decorating

27. Make Chantilly Cream (Whipped Cream) and apply two layers of Chantilly Cream.
28. Put a thick layer of cream on the top and put enough in the center to cover the cake. Then, put the cream around the side. Make it pretty as you want! I sliced fresh strawberries about 1/4-inch thick and put around the cake. Also, sliced whole strawberries with the stem on and decorate them on top of the cake.

ALEXA’S TIPS

1. It is pretty important to separate yolks from whites clearly when you make meringue or a cake like chiffon. When you have to separate quite a few eggs yolks and whites, try this method. There is a chance that you might break one yolk and not be able to use whites, but this is efficient if you are successive. Break egg shells carefully and put them all in a big bowl. Wash your hand really clean. Use your four fingers of both hands and separate yolks from egg whites by tossing egg yolks left and right. Wash your hands really well after this process!
2. The key point of making a good meringue is a. using a clean dry bowl and b. having egg whites without any part of yolks.
3. It is really important to put the chiffon cake batter in the oven as soon as you pour it in the pan. If you forgot to preheat the oven and have to let the batter sit for 5 or 10 minutes, the cake might sink instead raise because the air bubbles in meringue died. So, make sure you preheat the oven before you start!
4. If you are using a nonstick tube pan like I did, you don’t want to run a metal spatula and scratch the pan. Here is a little trick for that problem. I wrapped my metal spatula with plastic wrap a couple of times and it didn’t scratch a line! If you have a rubber bowl scraper, that can be a good tool.

Taste Review

I loved it! This cake is so light and moist. Plus, I love fresh strawberry and whipped cream.
My limit is usually a half piece for a butter cake or pound cake. However, oh boy, I can eat a giant slice of chiffon cake for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! Although you are a big fan of a butter cake, you will enjoy this soft and moist chiffon cake. =]

A side of the mocha chiffon cake! Isn’t it beautiful?

No time to decorate? Just slice a piece and enjoy with whipped cream and your favorite fruit on top! Or, drizzle a hot fudge sauce and sprinkle powdered sugar!

Next time, I will share with you how to make green tea, banana, chocolate, and strawberry chiffon cake.

Do you like chestnuts? I LOVE chestnuts! I think the best way to enjoy these seasonal treasures is to roast them over an open fire and eat them one at a time. You can also eat them with some sticky white rice, top your salads with some chopped chestnuts, or find a way to incorporate them with anything else that you like to eat.

In Korea I used to see fresh chestnuts in the market whenever it started to get cold outside. However, for some reason, it’s been very hard to find chestnuts in my local grocery stores in California. I’ve looked every year since I moved to the States but I couldn’t find any chestnuts. I guess 2008 was finally my lucky year because I finally found chestnuts when I was in Trader Joe’s and then again at Albertson’s (a grocery store chain).

I’ve been enjoying the chestnuts that I found by roasting them over an open fire as well as in the oven. I also decided to make some chestnut cupcakes with my favorite chiffon cake and a little chestnut spread icing from scratch! I could have used canned chestnut spread or puree, but 1. it was a little pricey and 2. I wanted to try to make it from scratch. So, let’s get started making some chestnut spread icing and vanilla chiffon cupcakes!

INGREDIENTS & EQUIPMENTS

Equipments

Mixer (Hand or Stand)
Food processor or Blender
Your favorite holiday cupcake baking cups

Ingredients – Makes 18 cupcakes

For the Vanilla Chiffon Cupcakes

3 egg yolks
1/4 cup and 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar A (see above picture)
1/4 cup and 2 teaspoons water
1/4 cup and 2 teaspoons olive oil
1 3/4 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup chopped, cooked chestnuts (optional)
5 egg whites
1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons sugar B (see above picture)

For the Chestnut Spread

1 pound whole chestnuts
1 cup sugar

For the Chestnut Spread Icing

1 cup chestnut spread
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon brandy or rum

HOW TO MAKE

Making the Chestnut Spread

1. Soak whole chestnuts in hot water for 30 minutes.
2. Peel the outer skin with a knife.
3. Soak them in hot water again for 15 minutes.
4. Use a scraping motion to peel the inner skin with a knife. Don’t worry about getting every little piece of the inner skin right now; we’ll do that later.

5. Soak the 90% peeled chestnuts in cold water for 15 minutes. Drain the water and then fill again until the water covers all of the chestnuts.
6. Bring the water to a boil and continue to boil the chestnuts for 5 minutes before draining again.
7. Peel the leftover skin from the chestnuts by hand or however you see fit – the skin should come off very easily.
8. Once again, fill the water up to where it covers all of the chestnuts and boil them on medium heat.

9. As you boil the chestnuts, the water level will go down as the water begins to evaporate. When the water level reaches the halfway mark on any of the chestnuts, add the cup of sugar to the chestnuts and reduce the heat to medium low. When the water only covers a third of any chestnut, they should all be ready for the next step.
10-12. Pour everything (the liquid and chestnuts) into a food processor or blender. Blend it all until you get a mushy consistency, you can strain the puree afterwards for a smoother spread. (Photo 11: Before puree & Photo 12: After puree) Store in a container and cool completely before use.

Making Vanilla Chiffon Cupcakes

Before you start

1. Preheat the oven to 300 F
2. Separate egg yolks and whites.
3. Sift cake flour and baking powder together.

Making egg yolk base

1-2. Whip the egg yolks for 30 seconds.
3. Add sugar A and mix well until everything reaches a pale yellow color.
4. Add water and continue mixing.

5. Add olive oil and continue mixing.
6. Add vanilla extract and continue mixing.
7. Add flour and baking powder mixture while mixing at a low speed just until you no longer see the flour.
8. Fold the optional chopped chestnuts into the cake batter with a spatula.

Making meringue

9-10. Whip egg whites for 1 minute at a high speed in separate container and then add half of sugar B while continuing to whip.
11-12. Add the rest of sugar B and continue to whip until you reach a medium peak.

Folding & Scooping

13-14. Add half of the meringue to the egg yolk mixture and gently fold with a whisk.
15. Scoop the mixture into your baking cups. An ice cream scoop usually provides the perfect amount for each baking cup!
16. Stir each cupcake once with some type of stick to let air escape from the mixture and then bake the cupcakes for approximately 25 minutes.

17. Leave the cupcakes in the baking pan for 5 minutes before taking them out to cool.
18. I placed half of my cupcakes upside down as soon as I took them out of the oven. This is something that you would need to do if you were baking a full sized chiffon cake to keep it from sinking. The half that weren’t upside down did not sink so you can cool your chiffon cupcakes right-side-up.

Making Chestnut Spread Icing

1. Whip the heavy cream at a medium speed for 1 minute. Then, add chestnut spread.
2. Beat until they are well blended.
3. Add your favorite brandy or rum and continue beating until it forms stiff peaks or it reaches a thickness to pipe.
4. Here is the chestnut spread icing.

Enjoy the vanilla chiffon cupcake with the chestnut spread icing!

ALEXA’S TIPS

1. Make sure that you cool the chestnut spread completely before you whip it with the heavy cream. If the chestnut spread is warm, the icing will be runny. I recommend that you put the spread in a refrigerator until it gets cold.
2. When you beat the chestnut spread with the heavy cream, make sure that you DO NOT over whip! If you whip the icing for too long, the fat will become chunky and the fluids from the heavy cream will start to separate.
3. While folding the meringue (in steps 13 & 14) into the egg yolk base, remember to scoop the very bottom of the bowl to ensure that the heavy ingredients (flour, sugar, yolk, etc.) mix properly with the meringue.

This is for Santa!

I wish you Merry Christmas…

TASTE REVIEW

I always love chiffon cakes because they’re surprisingly so moist and fluffy. Making cupcakes with this vanilla chiffon recipe was great, they were just like mini-chiffon cakes. Since I love chestnuts, I especially enjoyed adding the chestnut bits into the actual cupcakes.

I don’t really like making things super sweet, which is why I enjoy baking everything from scratch. This way I have more control over how sweet my desserts taste. Even though the chestnut spread might be sweeter than what I like and cost a little more than making it from scratch – I probably wouldn’t mind buying it in the future because it was very time consuming to make.

Homemade chestnut spread on top of the moist chiffon cupcakes.

Happy Holidays!

Cheesecake, Mmmm… who doesn’t love this sweet?
I’ve been looking for a lighter texture cheesecake recipe for a while, and I’ve finally found it!

I made this cake for one of our good friend’s birthday in February.

INGREDIENTS & EQUIPMENTS

Equipments

One 8-inch springform pan (or regular cake pan & parchment paper)
Mixer or food processor
Stand Mixer

Ingredients for Graham Cracker Crust

10-12 graham crackers
2 Tbsp sugar
4 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted

Ingredients for Cheesecake

2/3 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
1/2 cup sugar
1 lb cream cheese
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 Tbsp cornstarch
3 Tbsp bread flour
3 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted and kept warm

HOW TO MAKE

Making the Crust: Preheat the oven to 350 F.

1. Mix graham crackers, sugar, and melted butter with a rubber spatula.
2. Press into an even layer by using a flat-bottomed glass and bake about 5 minutes.

Making the Cheesecake Batter:Reduce the oven down to 325 F.

3. Puree the ricotta cheese and sugar in a food processor or regular mixer until smooth.
4. Soften the cream cheese in a stand mixer.

5. Add the ricotta mixture on medium speed until smooth – about 5 minutes.
6. Add the eggs and mix on low speed until they are well blended.
7. Add the vanilla extract, lemon juice, cornstarch, and flour to the batter and blend until smooth. (I tripled the amount of lemon juice that the original recipe called for, be sure to adjust the recipe to your liking.)
8. Add the melted butter until evenly blended.

Baking the Cheesecake by Using Water Bath Method

9. Spread the batter in an even layer over the crust & drop the pan onto the counter from the height of 1 inch to release any air bubbles.
10. Place the pan in a baking sheet and place the sheet on a pulled-out oven rack. Add about 1 inch of hot water. (Water bath is a simple method to have moist cheesecake.) Bake about 50-60 minutes until the edges are set.

11. When the cake starts to pull away from the sides, the cake is done. Remove it from the water bath and cool the cheesecake in the pan on a wire rack until it gets a room temperature. Then, refrigerate for at least 3 hours or up to overnight before unmolding.
12. Separate from the pan and it is ready to decorate.

13-14. I used whipped cream, lemon, and mint to decorate the cake.

And, of course, I couldn’t forget to pipe “Happy Birthday” on a birthday cake!

ALEXA’S TIPS

1. There is a cake pan that was designed for cheesecake, called springform. You can separate a cheesecake easily by unlocking side of pan. But, I couldn’t find mine that day. So, I just used a regular cake pan, but cut some parchment papers-long rectangle shape and place them across. when I separated the cake from the pan, I just lifted those 4 papers up. It worked pretty well!
2. It is very important to mix ricotta cheese and sugar well until well blended to get a soft smooth texture.
3. After thought, it would be also tasty if I made some lemon glaze and drizzle on top before I serve!

A very light texture cheesecake with a hint of lemon!

Little dots for an extra touch.

Enjoy it! =]