As Ching said, it looks as though i am the official birthday cake baker. Yes, Ching, self appointed. This is our dear friend, Kevin's birthday cake. He requested for cheesecake and since he loves wine, i decided to add liqueur and coffee to the Cotton Soft Japanese Cheesecake recipe and making it marbled.
6 egg whites
¼ tsp cream of tartar
70g fine granulated sugar
Frosting:
1 pkt Dream Whip
1/2 cup chilled milk
50 ml Kahlua
Method:
1. Preheat oven at 300 F and bring a kettle of water to a boil.
2. Lightly grease and line the bottom and sides which should be 1 1/2 " above the rim of a 8" pan with greaseproof paper.
3. Melt cream cheese, butter and milk in a double boiler.
4. Cool the mixture. over iced bath.
5. Fold in the flours, egg yolks, sugar and Kahlua and mix well.
6. Whisk egg white until foamy, then add in cream of tartar and whisk on the highest speed.
7. Add in the sugar gradually and whisk until soft peaks form.(if lifted with the whisk, the white should have a curve tip)
8. Add 1/3 of the whisked egg white into the cream cheese mixture in 5. Mix it really well with the biggest spatula available.
9. Fold in the rest of the egg white and then FOLD in, from the center to the sides and not forgeting the bottom of bowl. Do not overmix.
10. Pour into a 8” round cake pan(Using the method of pouring in the Zebra Cake
and adding 1/2 tsp of coffee emulco for the colored portion).
Line a roasting pan with a kitchen cloth at the bottom and place cake pan on the cloth. Place roasting pan in the preheated oven and pour boiling water into the roasting pan. Water level should be half way of cake pan.
11 Bake cheese cake for 1 hrs 30 mins or until set or golden brown.
12. Leave in the oven with door ajar for an hour until cake cools.
13. Take it out of oven and turn cake out of cake pan. Wrap with aluminium foil and leave in the fridge.
Frosting:
1. Whisked the Dream Whip with the chilled milk in the highest speed until stiff. Add in the Kahlua.
2. Iced the cheesecake with the whipped cream and decorate cake.
Back in Malaysia, fresh Hor fun or rather koay teow(hokkien) is so readily available. There used to be only one type and the size determines whether it is meant for frying or for soup. But, nowadays, the ones for soup, although the size is still smaller is made specially for soup. The best ones are found in Ipoh. Here in Denver, you will be lucky if you can find them not so frozen and who knows how long they have been on the shelves. There is a brand which is 'Southern California' which i managed to get from the Korean store that i frequent, but they did not replenish when stock went out. They have at the moment hor fun made in Denver, which is more rough. There is no choice but to go for the dried ones. Surprisingly, if it is steeped properly and being able to recognize the texture when frying, a delicious plate of noodles can be dished out.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs hor fun(frying type)
4 tbsp oil
2 tsp soya sauce
2 tsp dark soya sauce
Gravy:
4 ozs prawns - shelled and deveined - marinated with a pinch of salt, sugar and pepper
4 ozs calamari
8 ozs lean pork/chicken
8 ozs choy sum - washed and cut into bit size
2 cloves garlic chopped
2 tbsp oil
2 tbsp cornflour(heaped) mixed with 1/2 cup water
28 fl ozs stock
1 tbsp soya sauce
2 eggs
pepper and salt to taste
Method:
Loosen the fresh hor fun. (i would have to steam the hor fun before i could loosen it as it is quite stiff refrigerated.) (For the dried ones, steep in cold water)
Heat wok until very hot, add in enough oil to grease the wok, over hot fire, fry a handful of the the hor fun . Add light and dark soya sauces and stir fry briskly. Allow noodles to burn a little at the edges to obtain a smaky taste. Put aside on a platter. Repeat with the rest of the hor fun.
Heat 1 tbsp oil and fry prawns and calamari until cooked. Dished out.
Add 1 tbsp oil and fry the pork until it is cooked. Add in garlic and fry until fragrant.
Pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Let simmer for 5 minutes.
Add in the choy sum and when gravy comes to a boil, add in the cornflour mixture. Bring gravy back to a hard boil to cook the cornflour.
Add in the cooked prawns and calamari. Season to taste.
Turn off heat and crack in the 2 eggs, stir to cook the eggs.
