Snowy Red Velvet

Been so crazily busy!!! Not able to really take a break since helper went home for holiday. I have friends who asked me, why did I let her go home for so long.... she will be gone for almost 3 weeks. How can I not agree when she said she hopes to spend New Year there? She only gets to see her children every 2 years (she is a single mom too), I have to let her stay longer. Honestly, I struggled on the first couple of days especially first day!!! I had a party at home on the day she left. You can imagine the amount of work I have to do that day and the next day, I was exhausted! Ahhaha but I did it!!! Kids helped too. I am so glad they are good kids. They behaved and looked after themselves well when I left them alone at home while I work. Proud of them. 

As much as I would like to just be lazy, sit back and relax, I do not want to miss out the Christmas cheers and fun!! A gathering on Christmas eve was a pretty last minute arrangement with few of my close friends. Nice cosy dinner ..... wonderful. All excited like a little girl waiting to go to playground to play with friends... hmmmm not so little anymore..... maybe minus 35 years??  Ahhahaha pardon me. Anyway, its an exciting plan for me so I decided to make a special dessert with Christmas touch. Have always been wanting to make Red Velvet cake but did not get to do it. Finally, my chance is here. A twist added to my dish. I found this cake recipe and turned out really well!! As for the cream cheese, I kind of just do it the way I like my cream cheese to be and this is the perfect frosting for the cake. :-)

Snowy Red Velvet
Adapted from “The Confetti Cakes Cookbook” by Elisa Strauss via the New York Times 2/14/07

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
3 1/2 cups cake flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa (not Dutch process)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 cup canola oil
2 1/4 cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs
6 tablespoons (3 ounces) red food coloring or 1 teaspoon red gel food coloring dissolved in 6 tablespoons of water
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/4 cup buttermilk
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 1/2 teaspoons white vinegar.
a bunch of chocolate chips for sprinkle

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place teaspoon of butter in each of 3 round 9-inch layer cake pans and place pans in oven for a few minutes until butter melts. Remove pans from oven, brush interior bottom and sides of each with butter and line bottoms with parchment.

2. Whisk cake flour, cocoa and salt in a bowl.

3. Place oil and sugar in bowl of an electric mixer and beat at medium speed until well-blended. Beat in eggs one at a time. With machine on low, very slowly add red food coloring. (Take care: it may splash.) Add vanilla. Add flour mixture alternately with buttermilk in two batches. Scrape down bowl and beat just long enough to combine.

4. Place baking soda in a small dish, stir in vinegar and add to batter with machine running. Beat for 10 seconds.

5. Divide batter among pans, place in oven and bake until a cake tester comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool in pans 20 minutes. Then remove from pans, flip layers over and peel off parchment. Cool completely before frosting.



Cream Cheese Frosting

227g cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup butter room temperature
2 cups confectioner's sugar, sifted

Place cream cheese and butter in a medium bowl. With a handheld electric mixer, beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add sugar and vanilla.  Beat on low speed to combine. If too soft, chill until slightly stiff, about 10 minutes, before using.

6. Cut cake into small chunks. lay them on a rectangular dish. Pack them tightly. 

7. Spread the frosting on the chunks of cake.  Cover completely.

8. Sprinkle chocolate chips on the frosting.

9. I crushed left over cake crumbs all over the frosting.  

Job done!!  Enjoy :)


Note: If you want thicker frosting, double the ingredients.

Wonderful Roasted Potatoes

The moment I saw this recipe I knew I must give it a shot.  Beautiful looking potatoes with bacon and butter.....its enough for me to give up my diet plan ahhaha Most important thing in this recipe is to slice the potatoes into very thin slice and I am glad I have pretty good slicing skill :p It is totally worth all the effort!!

Wonderful Roasted Potatoes

3 tbsp butter, melted
3 tbsp olive oil
10 russet potatoes, peeled and sliced thinly
1 small onion, peeled and sliced thinly
6 stripes of bacon, cut into small bite size
Salt and pepper to taste


1. Preheat oven to 180 degree C

2. Combine melted butter and olive oil in a small bowl.

3. Brush an oven proof dish with the butter mixture. (I use aluminum foil pan)

4. Arrange sliced potatoes vertically in the pan. Stuff sliced onion in between potatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and brush the remaining butter and oil mixture.                

5. Bake for 1 hour and 25 mins uncovered. If potatoes become too dry,brush with more butter and oil mixture.  You may also use a butter knife to separate some of the slices if they stick together too much.

6. While baking the potatoes, brown bacon in a pan with some olive oil.

7. Remove potatoes from oven and stuff bacon all over the potatoes and bake for additional 30 minutes.  Remove from oven.

8. Serve immediately.  Sour cream will be a great accompaniment to the potatoes.

Serve this at party.  Will be great hit!!!

Refreshing Fruit Salad

Many years ago, I organised a gathering at home with friends. A friend made fruit salad for the pot luck gathering. I fell in love with this salad immediately!!! Must eat it when chilled. I gobbled down 4 bowls at one go!!!!! Gosh so delicious! I tried to make it myself and came up with my version of the fruit salad. Refreshing and light. Sometimes I eat it for lunch or just chilled it in fridge and eat as snack. So yummy, so simple to make.

Refreshing Fruit Salad

A bowl of grapes ( I love black grapes), washed and cut half
A can of mixed fruit cocktail, save 2 tbsp of juice from the can and discard the rest
1 red apple, peeled and cut into small bite size
1 small pack of peach yogurt
Juice of half a lemon                                                

1. Combine grapes, fruit cocktail, juice from cocktail can, apple, yogurt and lemon juice. Mixed well.

2. Chilled for at least an hour before serving.  

Enjoy!! :-)