kaastengel

maybe some of you don't know about this biscuits. it's famous in Indonesia though, i don't know where the name comes from because it doesn't sound Indonesian at all. perhaps the name comes from Dutch because there are many Indonesian cakes using sound-like-Dutch name. for example: klappertaart, onbitjkoek, and this kaastengel.

when it comes to Christmas or Eid, cookies and biscuits always seen in almost every house. Kaastengel is kind of a must have one, the other is Nastar and Cats' Tongue. actually, kaastengel is almost a savory biscuit with parmesan or edam cheese as the main ingredients. this is my first time making kaastengel but it turns out great. all my family members love this, moreover they can't stop nibbling at this biscuit when they're watching television, except me. i don't like savory biscuits, i prefer the sweet one.

the recipe was originally from Anchor but i found it through Mbak Anne Vijaya's blog. the recipe makes a crisp and very tasty biscuit. i'll simply put it on top of the favorite cookies recipes. at least even though i won't make it to satisfy my appetite, it could make other people happy. i know a lot of people who loves kaastengel as much as i love Cashew Sandies (Putri Salju in Indonesian). they'll be thrilled with this recipe.

peanut cupcakes

hello. i'm starting to welcome 2011, may it bring us more prosperity. anyway, i made this cupcakes for my brother's birthday cake. it's supposed to be 12 cupcakes in a tier but there's only 2 left and that's all i can take to show them to you through my lens. wew, i don't want to do a comment on this, but my writing today feels a little different than usual. i am writing this post in 10 am in the morning in heavy rain and cold breeze. i love this condition, if only i have a nice cup of hot chocolate beside me this will be a bliss.

my brother is only 9 years old, he hasn't reached a stage where boys are afraid to nuts. according to some information, nuts can cause acnes and it's so funny that boys nowadays are taking a little more care about their appearance. in the other hand, my brother loves peanut, peanut brittle to be exact. he's a big fan of peanut, butterscotch, and caramel. so this cake is specially requested by him.

luckily, i have a peanut cupcakes recipe with caramel frosting. perfect combo. the recipe turns out nice as well, lovely taste. i decorated the cupcakes with choco-balls and carefully piped the frosting with star nozzle tip. the result is pretty decent and i quite like it at least i piped better than usual. i cut a lot amount of sugar from this recipe and i'm sure it's better this way. do you like peanut and caramel? you may try this recipe and find out the wonderfulness.

chocolate marble sponge roll

hi! do you know that i have a very long story about this chocolate marble sponge roll? well, first of all, i didn't meant to make this in the first place. making a chocolate-hazelnut sponge roll was the main idea. who knew i would end up making this more festive sponge roll.

the story all started on the christmas eve. i had a tradition of giving cakes or cookies to some people. so far, i was like always associating christmas cake with a sponge roll and now i finally know where that idea comes from. buche de noel! yeah, buche de noel is a christmas'-must-have-cake in France and some other countries, but apparently not in Indonesia of course. buche de noel or yule log is a very incredible cake and praise the one who invented it. however, my skill was way below that, especially the frosting-thing. yule log is almost a normal sponge-roll decorated with frosting until it looks like a log. beautiful cake it is.

since that cake still seems impossible for me to make, i decided to make a normal sponge-roll without frosting on the exterior. my choice fell to a chocolate hazelnut sponge roll but the recipe brings me down, i tried twice on the very same day and both booed me. if i do the math, i was like wasting 9 eggs, 100 grams of hazelnut powder, 250 grams chocolate couverture, and 100 gr flour. i really wanted to cry if i remember all those waste. after my second trial on the hazelnut cake, i ran to my room, tried to find another recipe while soothing and boosting my mood back. i decided to use my classic sponge roll recipe and be loyal to it, the one that never fail me. but i don't want it to be just plain, i wanted to make a pattern on it, i wanted it to taste unusual. so i modified the recipe, i made marbled pattern for the cake and flavor the filling with irish cream. tell me it's festive enough..

i couldn't be more happy to see my cake batter looking so fluffy, so wonderful in its way, moreover when i saw it poured into my jelly-roll-pan. the most exquisite part is when i dropped the chocolate batter on it and swirled it. to be honest and a little of bragging my self, i made a great pattern you know. ha ha. finally, the cake came out from the oven and i started to roll it and make the filling. the filling was whipped cream with some shots of Baileys, superb! i gave this cake to my bf's parent and this cake was complimented. how couldn't i give a little credit to myself? he he. thanks to the marvelous recipe below, this recipe is one of the oldest recipe i discovered in my baking journey and have i told you that this recipe never fails me? you better try this and prove it to your self..

Very Merry Christmas

i'm late!! am i that late? please say no, i really hope i'm not that late to give you my greetings, anywhere you are. :)

Have a Very Merry Christmas everyone!
joy and peace be with us all..
HAPPY HOLIDAY!

raspberry panna cotta

hello hello hello, i'm back again. the smell of holiday is already in the air, i couldn't be more happy. moreover, this is December! Christmas Holiday and everybody knows that this is the most wonderful time of the year. christmas means loads and loads of cookies, cakes, decorations, candies, oh my even imagining each of them makes me feel so happy. i haven't started the cookies/cakes parade yet in my house (ha!) but i have some pretty desserts to match the christmas decorations, it's my raspberry panna cotta. you know i love panna cotta, i really do.

until this time, i haven't got the chance to post panna-cotta in my blog because i actually have never made them again since a very long time. suddenly i crave again for them and this time following exactly what the recipe ask me to put. for all my life, this is my first time making panna-cotta with real gelatin powder, i usually use agar powder. i wasn't really thrilled to see how the gelatin was incorporated to the milk mixture, gelatin powder almost ruins the smell of the vanilla and cream. however, gelatin gives a more jiggly consistency and it makes the panna-cotta glides from my lips to my tongue to my throat and i believe it still glides inside my stomach. wonderful texture! (minus the scent of it for sure)

now, let's talk about the raspberries. this is also my first time making desserts with raspberries, i never thought they taste that fantastic. even though they have so many seeds for me that is the fun part! i love chewing those seeds. also, the sour and fruity taste of the raspberries gives an awesome contrast to the creamy part. this is what we called opposites attract. for those who haven't been able to taste panna-cotta, come on make it! panna-cotta is a very simple dessert and it is not time-consuming, the best part is they're extremely delicious!