Christmas Baking

I went for a special Christmas baking workshop earlier on. We made Christmas Tiramisu Wonderland Cake and a Christmas Log Cake. Finally, I got to find out how a log cake is being made, although of course mine does not really look like a log cake, as can be seen from the picture. :-p

At least the Tiramisu cake turned out looking like one, but since it is in the fridge as at the time of this entry, I have no idea how it tastes like. I hope it tastes good though!

The Tiramisu cake was made using the original recipe of rum, tiramisu fingers and freezing of the batter, instead of baking. Once the cake has hardened, remove it from the freezer then sprinkle cocoa powder on top of it. Splatter with chocolate bits at the side. No wonder Tramisu cakes all taste of bitter chocolate, because of the cocoa powder!

Christmas Tiramisu Wonderland Cake

The next cake we made was the Christmas Log Cake. The log cake was originally made using a square sponge cake. The batter consists of melted chocolate and cream cheese. Once the sponge cake has been baked, splatter the batter on half of the cake, then roll it into a Swiss roll.

Cut off a bit of the cake at the end, then attach the bit to the middle to make it look like a log. Splatter with icing all over to attach the two parts together, then draw lines using a fork. Decorate with Christmas decorative bits and it is ready to be served.

Christmas Log Cake

Variety Of Cake Baking

I had a very enjoyable time at a chocolate cake making workshop yesterday. The recipes ranged from simple cake making to more advanced cake decoration. All in all, we made three cakes (two required baking, one did not) and some muffins. This time I managed to take some photos of my "creation"!

We started off with muffin making. Besides the normal ingredients for muffins, the recipe also include melted dark chocolate and cocoa powder to give a chocolatey feel and taste. Once the muffins are ready, cut a hollow bit off the centre and fill it with melted chocolate paste. Cover up the hollow and leave to cool. Decorate with whipped cream and top it with cherries, Chocolate decorations or sprinkle with hundreds and thousands as desired.

Muffins with cherry, hundreds and thousands and Malteser.

The next recipe was on American Chocolate Carrot Cake. It is a normal carrot cake with chocolate filling, covered with the layer of frosting on top, and sprinkled with white chocolate cut into little bits. I must say I am rather proud the cake turned out looking almost perfect!

American Chocolate Carrot Cake (Side View)

Completed American Chocolate Carrot Cake
(topped with chopped white chocolate)

Next recipe was on non-baked cheesecake - the Rich Chocolate Mars Cheesecake. It is non-baked as it requires freezing to harden the cake. There are two kinds of fillings - one cheese feeling and the other chocolate filling. The cheese filling is made of Philadelphia Cream Cheese and the chocolate filling is made of cocoa powder and chopped Mars bars.

There are two layers to this cake. The first layer is made of crushed Digestive biscuits as the base, added with cocoa powder and melted butter. Then the cheese filling is poured over it until the pan is about two-thirds full. After that, the cake is put into the freezer to harden. Top it off with a layer of melted chocolate before putting it back into the freezer. Freeze for twenty-four hours or so before serving.

Rich Chocolate Mars Cheesecake

The last cake was the Chocolate Celebration Cake, consisting of a layered sponge cake with decorations and garnishings. The sponge cake consists of four layers, like a marble cake. The first layer is also a cheese filling (filled with crushed nuts and mixed fruit), second layer cocoa filling, and so on until the round tin is two-thirds full. The top layer is the cocoa filling.

Next, we made whipped cream filled with chocolate paste as icing to put on top of the cake. Spread the icing evenly on top and at the sides. Decorate the sides with chocolate rice or chopped milk chocolate.

After that, melt some chocolate, put on top of a plastic bag on a tray, smooth the chocolate over the bag, leave it to cool for a while before putting it in the freezer to harden the melted chocolate. Once the chocolate is hardened, cut it into triangles or any other decorative shapes as desired.

Chocolate Decorations
(made from hardened melted chocolate)

Place the chocolate decorations on top of the sponge cake. Garnish with whipped cream, hundreds and thousands, chocolate rice, chocolate bits and cherries if desired. Ready to serve.

Completed Chocolate Celebration Cake

The Charcoal Restaurant @ Treasury

The Charcoal Restaurant is situated at the ground floor of The Treasury, opposite the new Supreme Court. It has two entrances (exits). I went in from the side entrance facing the courts, whereas the main entrance is the one facing the side road. For those familiar with the area, you can more or less understand the orientation. For those unfamiliar with the place, well, dig up a map and take a look for yourselves. ;-p

The restaurant reminds me of an European bistro of sorts, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. Dinner was four course, consisting of soup (we both ordered mushroom soup), main course (I ordered Bangers and Mash whereas he ordered seafood), cake of the day (I had chocolate while he had truffle) and then coffee / tea (where we both had tea).

The food is okay, although the tea is good, fruity with a strong aroma. Most likely the waiter served us Darjeeling tea instead of English Breakfast or Earl Grey. Not that I am complaining, because I am more a tea person than a coffee person (although between cappuccino and coffee, I much prefer the former).

What I like about the restaurant is the interior setting. It has a very zen-like feeling, chic and up-market type of look. No wonder most of the patrons are youngsters, as the design reflects the sophisticated and elegant taste of the young, not the classic taste of the old(er). It is a place I will not mind going again, just for a cuppa or to hang out with friends!

Food : 3 out of 5
Ambience : 4 out of 5
Price : 3.5 out of 5