Brownie Cookies! - Baking with Tray ep. 9

Hi everyone! 

Had a fun bake session with my niece today ^^ This recipe was really good for kids! Super simple and the hardest thing was probably microwaving the butter and chocolate. All you need is just need one bowl and one spoon! 

These cookies were a great texture: nice and chewy! I sprinkled the top with a bit of salt and that just took the flavour to the next level. As it's school holidays at the moment, maybe you can make these with your kids!

Brownie Cookies
Recipe by Sweetest Menu

Ingredients
150g dark chocolate melts (a block of eating chocolate also works)
75g unsalted butter
200g caster sugar (*EDIT: I made these again recently and reduced the sugar to 180g and it was still nice and sweet)
2 large eggs
105g plain flour
40g cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
75g chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 180oC (normal oven) or 160oC (fan-forced). Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
2. Place butter and dark chocolate in large microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 30 second bursts, mixing in between until melted and smooth.
3. Add sugar and mix together. Add in eggs one at a time, mixing after eat addition until well incorporated.
4. Add flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Stir until smooth.
5. Add chocolate chips and mix well.
6. Spoon tablespoonful of mix onto baking tray (I used a cookie scoop/ice-cream scoop and it was really useful!). Make sure you leave enough room for the cookies to spread. Bake for 13-14 minutes until cookies have spread and cracked on top.
7. Leave cookies on tray to cool completely to cool before eating (I know it can be hard waiting but it's worth it!!). Sprinkle with a bit of salt and enjoy!

If you have a sweet craving, these are quick to make and will definitely satisfy those cravings!

Happy Baking!! Till the next episode... :)

Matthew's Chocolate Cake - Blind Baking with Tray: Pilot episode

Hi guys!

I trialled a new series called "Blind Baking with Tray" on my instagram (@bakingtraybakes) yesterday where I get a special guest to bake, while I instruct them. So essentially they are "baking blind" because they don't know what the method is ^^ They will just have to rely on my instructions and their instinct! Haha! 

The name of the series is also a pun because to "blind bake" is to bake a pie shell/pastry shell before adding the filling. Just a play on words~

Yesterday's special guest was my HUSBAND! Mr. Chin ^^" I have to say he did a really good job!! Maybe we will see more of him in the future!

I saw this recipe on Bread Ahead Bakery's Live instagram bakes (@breadaheadbakery)! They have baking tutorials every day at 2PM UK time! It's awesome! Go check them out if you can! Oh and the owner of the bakery is Matthew which is why the cake is called "Matthew's Chocolate Cake".

Matthew's Chocolate Cake
Recipe from Bread Ahead Bakery

Ingredients

CAKE
185g self-raising flour
2g baking powder
30g cocoa powder
140g caster sugar
4g bicarb soda
210g milk
210g vegetable oil
3 medium eggs (150g)
40g golden syrup (or honey)
50g roasted walnuts, chopped (optional for decoration)

CHOCOLATE GANACHE
175g thickened cream
200g dark chocolate
1g salt
25g unsalted butter
(Note: I used half of this recipe and it was plenty of ganache ^^)

1. Preheat oven to 170oC, fan-forced (or 180oC, fan-forced if making cupcakes). Grease and line baking tin (I used a rectangle loaf pan).
2. Place dry ingredients (self-raising flour, baking powder, cocoa powder, caster sugar and bicarb soda) in a large bowl and whisk to combine.
3. In a separate bowl add the eggs and whisk. Add the rest of the wet ingredients (vegetable oil, milk and golden syrup) and whisk until combined.
4. Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until all combined.
5. Pour into lined cake tin and bake for 30-40 minutes (check at 30 minutes as each oven is different). If making cupcakes, bake at 180oC for 14 minutes. Allow to cool before decorating with ganache.
6. To make chocolate ganache, place cream in small saucepan over medium heat. When it just comes to the boil, remove from heat and add dark chocolate and stir until chocolate melted.
7. Add in pinch of salt and butter and stir until smooth.
8. Allow to cool/thicken before icing the cake. You can place ganache in fridge to speed up cooling process.
9. Decorate cake with ganache and add nuts or berries (optional).

This recipe is great for first time bakers! Happy baking!! Till the next episode...

Mixed Berry Brownies - Baking with Tray ep. 3

Hello!

This week on "Baking with Tray" we baked BROWNIES! I mean .... who doesn't like brownies?? Since I discovered this recipe, it has been my go-to brownie recipe. I love it because it's super simple, just one bowl, one spoon and you can customise the toppings. I used frozen mixed berries (fresh would do fine!) and some walnuts. The berries give a nice tang to the sweet chocolatey brownies and the walnuts give a crunchy texture.  

These brownies have it all: crispy top and edges, chewy sides and fudgey centres! So hope you guys try it out :D

Mixed Berry Brownies
Recipe adapted from Sweetest Menu 

Ingredients
115g unsalted butter
200g dark chocolate melts
100g (1/2 cup) caster sugar
90g (1/2 cup) brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 large eggs
70g (1/2 cup) plain flour
20g (1/4 cup) cocoa powder
75g (1/2 cup) milk chocolate chips 
125g mixed berries
50g walnuts (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 180oC or 160oC fan forced. Grease and line a 20cm square baking tin.
2. Place butter and dark chocolate in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave until melted (do this in 30 second rounds, stirring after each round. Mine took about 1 minute total). Allow to cool slightly.
3. Add in sugars and vanilla and mix until incorporated.
4. Add in the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. (You don't want your bowl to be too hot otherwise the eggs will scramble!)
5. Add in the flour and cocoa powder and mix until incorporated.
6. Add in milk chocolate chips and stir well. (You can also choose to add some berries and walnuts at this stage too.) Pour mix into lined baking tin using a spatula to scrape the bowl to get everything out.
7. Place berries and walnuts on top. Gently press down.
8. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until cooked through. You can tell by the crack on the edges and the brownie no longer wobbles. Leave to cool completely before cutting. Dust with icing sugar before serving.

Hope you guys try this out because it really is simple and delicious!!

Happy baking! Till the next episode... :)

Work Catering #45: For peanut butter lovers

I'm not sure how we came about the topic but my friend and I started talking about peanut butter and baking. To be honest, I haven't baked a lot with peanut butter. I know it's quite popular in America but the craze hasn't really caught on in Australia. It's not that I don't like peanut butter.. I used to have it on toast and in sandwiches all the time when I was younger! So when I came across this recipe for Peanut butter stuffed brownies, I decided I would make this for all the peanut butter lovers out there!

Peanut butter stuffed brownies
Recipe adapted from Sallys Baking Addiction

Ingredients
1/2 cup (115g) salted butter
230g dark chocolate
3/4 cup (150g) caster sugar
1/4 cup (50g) brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence
1/2 cup + 2 tbs (80g) plain flour
2 tbs (16g) cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt

Peanut butter filling
3/4 cup (185g) creamy peanut butter
1 cup (120g) icing sugar
2 tsp vanilla essence
2 tbs (30ml) milk
2 tbs each chocolate chips and peanut butter chips (I used butterscotch chips)

1. Melt butter and dark chocolate in medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly for 10 minutes.
2. Make peanut butter filling by beating peanut butter, icing sugar, vanilla and milk together with electric mixer until combined. The mixture will be thick. Set aside.
3. Adjust oven rack to lower third position and preheat oven to 180oC. Grease and line 23cm square baking pan with baking paper. 
4. Whisk sugars into the cooled chocolate/butter mixture. Add the eggs, one at a time, whisking until smooth after each addition. Add in vanilla. Gently fold in flour, cocoa powder and salt. 
5. Pour half of the brownie batter into prepared baking pan. Take large chunks of peanut butter filling and flatten with your hands. Place flat pieces in an even layer on top of the brownie layer. 

Pour the remaining brownie batter on top. Top with chocolate chips and peanut butter chips. Bake for ~35 minutes or until skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Don't overbake them!

Can u see the peanut butter layer??

There's the peanut butter fudge layer!

Another easy slice I baked was this Chocolate rough slice. It's egg free! And kind of tastes like a rum ball but slice version~ Coconut lovers will love this slice!

Chocolate Rough Slice
Recipe adapted from Baker's Corner

Ingredients
Base
1 cup self raising flour
1 tbs cocoa powder
1/4 cup desiccated coconut
1/3 cup caster sugar
125g butter, melted

Topping
1 tbs cocoa powder
3/4 cup condensed milk
100g dark chocolate, melted
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
2 cups desiccated coconut

1. Preheat oven to 180oC. Line an 18cm x 28cm baking pan with baking paper.
2. Combine base ingredients in large bowl and press into prepared pan. Bake for 15 minutes until golden.
3. Combine topping ingredients in another bowl and spread over base. Cool and then cut into slices.

Rough looking? haha

Smaller portions look nicer

Coconutty and chocolatey!

"This post is linked to the event Little Thumbs Up (June 2014 Event: Butter) organised by Zoe (Bake for Happy Kids) and Mui Mui (My Little Favourite DIY) and hosted by Jozelyn Ng (Spice Up My Kitchen)" 

Work Catering #44: Cookie Dough Brownies!

How did I not discover this before!? Cookie Dough + Brownies :D :D!! Another brownie variation ^^" I do like finding different brownie recipes.. adding berries, nuts, cream cheese... and now COOKIE DOUGH :D The cookie dough is raw but don't be afraid because it's eggless and acts like a frosting for the brownies.

Cookie Dough Brownies
Recipe adapted from The Baker Upstairs

Ingredients
Brownies
1/2 cup (113g) salted butter
225g dark chocolate
1 cup caster sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence
3/4 cup plain flour
1/4 tsp salt

1. Preheat oven to 180oC. Grease and line rectangle baking pan (20x30cm).
2. Melt butter and chocolate in medium saucepan on medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
3. Stir in sugar into cooled mixture until combined. Add in eggs one at a time, mixing until fully incorporated. Mix in vanilla.
4. Gently fold in flour and salt. Pour batter into prepared pan, smoothing the top with a knife.
5. Bake for ~30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean (it's better to underbake these brownies than overbake as they will turn out too dry).

Cookie dough
3/4 cup (170g) unsalted butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup caster sugar
3 tbs milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 1/2 cups mini chocolate chips

1. Beat butter and both sugars in medium bowl with electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Add milk and vanilla and mix until combined.
2. Reduce speed to low and mix in flour until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips with spatula.
3. Spread an even layer on top of the baked brownies.

So yummy!!! it's like cookie and brownie all in one!

The chocolate chips really give great texture and flavour~

I was reading a cook book and found a recipe for some cookies! They looked really good.. simple and delicate.. so I decided to make them...

However mine didn't exactly look like the pictures in the book XD
Coconut and Chocolate Sandwich cookies
Recipe adapted from Sugar and Spice by Callie Maritz and Mari-Louis Guy

Ingredients
250g unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
1 cup (200g) caster sugar
2 1/2 cups (250g) fine desiccated coconut
2 cups (280g) plain flour
1/4 cup (30g) cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
100g dark chocolate, chopped + extra for decoration
80ml thickened cream

1. Preheat oven to 180oC. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
2. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and creamy.
3. Add coconut, flour, cocoa and baking powder and mix through.
3. Roll the dough into about 60 balls with your hands and place on baking tray. Press each one to slightly flatten. Press a small block of chocolate into the middle of each biscuit. Bake for 15 minutes, then remove and allow the biscuits to cool completely.
4. Make chocolate ganache by melting chocolate and cream in a heat proof bowl over pot with simmering water. Allow to cool or even refrigerate to thicken.

5. Sandwich two biscuits together with chocolate ganache.

Yummy biscuits :D

OK so they don't look super pretty...

but still taste good =p

These turned out a bit bigger than I would have liked... tastewise, a little bit dry but the ganache helps with that :) It kind of tasted like an Anzac cookie because of the coconut.

More coconut recipes coming soon :D oh and brownie recipes ^_^

Birthday bake: Dark Chocolate Raspberry Coffee cake

It was my cousin-in-law's birthday a few weeks ago and so wanted to bake a cake for her! I knew that she'd probably get a lot of chocolates and cakes so wanted to go for something a little lighter! Then I remembered this AWESOME BRIGHT COLOURFUL cake I saw on .. (yes that's right!) Sally's Baking Addiction blog! Actually everything she makes is quite colourful but this cake really did stand out with her bright almost-hot-pink raspberries ^_^ The recipe seemed easy and I had all the ingredients in my pantry (don't you love those kind of recipes!) so here it is!

Dark Chocolate Raspberry Coffee Cake
Recipe adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction

Ingredients
Streusel
3 Tbs (45g) unsalted butter, cold
1/4 cup (50g) caster sugar
1/4 cup (31g) plain flour
1/2 cup (64g) slivered almonds

Cake
2 cups (250g) plain flour
3/4 cup (150g) caster sugar
1/4 cup (60g) unsalted butter, softened at room temp
1 cup (240ml) buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla essence
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 large egg
1 cup (180g) dark chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate)
1 1/2 cups raspberries (fresh/frozen)

1. Preheat oven to 180oC. Grease and line 8 inch square baking pan/dish.
2. Make streusel by gently mashing cold butter in small bowl. Add flour, sugar and mix with fork. Add almonds and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, add flour, sugar, butter, milk, vanilla, baking powder, salt and egg. Beat on low until everything combined, remembering to scrape down the bowl if using stand mixer. Do not over mix.
4. Spread half of batter into baking pan/dish. Layer with half of the streusel, then most of the raspberries and chocolate chips. Repeat with rest of batter and streusel. Top with remaining raspberries and chocolate chips.

Layer 1

5. Bake for 45-50 minutes until skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Loosely over with foil after 20 minutes to prevent sides from over browning.   

Big slices!

Slice for you!

The colours of the cake were really vibrant! However, the cake was a little bit too dense and I think it was due to over mixing... ideally I wanted the texture to be more crumbly and cakey... but the flavours were still there :) Hope she liked it ^^and if she didn't... it's the thought that counts right? XD

The FACS cake - for all the science nerds out there!

I don't think many people will get this post.. it's a bit of a science "inside-joke" but nonetheless I want to share it with all of you XD

My friend left 2 weeks... off to pursue a new and exciting job! So although it is sad and I will miss her... I'm also excited for her! and it's not like I can't go visit and vice versa! haha! So this cake was made for her farewell!

I can't take any of the credit because she once showed me a picture of a cake that she suggested I make, but I guess I never had the opportunity to make it, until now! It's a FACS cake~ FACS stands for .. (ok .. nerd time!) Fluorescence-activated cell sorting. It's basically a method to distinguish different cells based on their markers and then you use this machine to analyse them. (I know all you can hear me say is "blah blah blah" xD so let's get to the recipe!!!)

I used my trusty One Bowl Chocolate Cake recipe (all credits go to I bake for you). After letting the cake cool, I frosted with vanilla icing and then went creative with my icing pen and sprinkles! Lots of fun :D

The whole lab had a laugh and enjoyed the cake and said it was really moist (yay!). Although I'm not a professional cake decorator, I do enjoy the occasional cake design =p

Work Catering #38: So CHEESECAKEY!!

If you have been reading my blog, you will know that I LOVEEEE CHEESECAKE!!! It's the one cake that I could live off if I was ever stuck on a deserted island... and I wouldn't be sick of it XD There are just SOOO many different cheesecakes out there! Baked.. frozen...chocolate.. fruity... mini... slice...  the list goes on!

So for catering this week I decided to bake a classic carrot cake with a twist. Surprisingly I have not made carrot cake before! (GASP! I KNOW!) It's such a classic and I love the cream cheese frosting (MY FAVOURITE FROSTING!) so I discovered this recipe that combined carrot cake with cheesecake - a twist on the original cream cheese frosting. The base is carrot cake, while the topping is baked cheesecake. This slice is best served chilled so try and be patient and chill in fridge before eating ^^ if you can...

ok i know.. uneven layers >_>

Carrot cake cheesecake slice
Recipe adapted from The Sweets Life

Ingredients
Carrot Cake
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarb soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tsp vanilla essence
1/3 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup shredded coconut
1/3 raisins
1 1/2 cups grated carrot (about 2 large carrots)
1 large egg
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Cheesecake
500g cream cheese, softened
1 can (395g) sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup sour cream
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
2 large eggs

1. Preheat oven to 180oC and line rectangular baking pan (20x30cm) with baking paper.
2. Beat all carrot cake ingredients in a large bowl with an electric mixture until a thick dough forms (a stand mixer is great for this). Press dough into prepared pan, spreading an even layer. Set aside while you prepare filling.
3. In a separate bowl, beat cream cheese with electric mixer until fluffy. Beat in condensed milk until smooth. Make sure to scrape down sides of bowl. Add sour cream, salt, vanilla and eggs. Mix until combined.
4. Pour cheesecake mixture over the carrot cake base, spreading evenly. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until just set. The centre should have a slight wobble.
5. Allow to cool completely before covering and refrigerating until bars are set, for 2-3 hours or best overnight. Cut into squares and serve chilled.

Was def a winner at work! they loved it :D

One bite is not really enough...

Next up are these cute little choc cheesecake cups! The smaller the dessert.. the more you can eat right? XD These are just the right size and no bake! You could make them in larger cups or even a cake tin, just double the recipe.

Chocolate Cheesecake cups
Recipe adapted from DK learns to cook

Ingredients
Base
250g Nice biscuits
100g butter, melted
4 tbs cocoa powder

Filling
250g cream cheese, softened at room temperature
1/4 cup icing sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
150g dark chocolate
150g thickened cream

1/4 cup milo

1. Process/Crush biscuits with cocoa powder until fine. Add melted butter and mix well. Press 1/2 tsp into base of small cups.
2. Beat thickened cream until soft peaks form and refrigerate. Melt chocolate in microwave and allow to cool.
3. Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add in icing sugar and vanilla and beat until combined.
4. Mix melted chocolate into cream cheese mixture until combined.
5. Mix 1/3 of cream into mixture. Add remaining cream and fold until no white streaks remain.
6. Carefully spoon cream cheese mixture into cups. Dust with milo and refrigerate for at least 8 hours before serving. 

Lots of mini cups! mmm

dont forget the spoons! hehe

Looks like chocolate mousse yeah?

So get out there!! Make some cheesecake!! :D I'm sure I'll have many more cheesecake recipes to come! But here's some you can check out :)

Cookies and cream slice

 

Raspberry Crumble Cheesecake

  

Mini Blueberry Cheesecakes

Apple Crumble cheesecake

Blackforest cheesecake

Green Tea Cheesecake bites

Nutella Cheesecake

Tim Tam Cheesecake

Cheesecake Chocolate chip cookie Slice