Finally...I am also attacked by rainbow fever

These previous 2 years I've seen rainbow-y cake, cookies all over the internet.

Do you still remember my rainbow fruit loops picture? 

Finally I got company to make this six layers cake. 

We used white cake mix and whipped cream frosting and colorful chocolate border...

Here are our colorful cake  ^_^

Xtina, when will we try to make the roll cake version? 

in the making

in the fridge before serving

voila.....colorful layers...honestly, I only love to see the colors but for cake, I prefer chocolate cake ^_^

proud bakers

Very First Wedding Projects

I'm amazed to experience how internet world can change our life.

I never did a fruit basket arrangement, but when the mother of the groom asked me to do that, I just can replied "yes". For about two weeks I've searched & browsed about edible arrangement. 

So thankful for many tutorial videos in youtube. 

Finally I can finished the arrangement. 

Beside the arrangement, I also made four traditional dessert trays using bamboo trays and banana leaves, getuk (cassava cake), chocolate fountain & fruit skewer, brownies bites, and  food label for buffet dinner & desert bar. 

my design for food label

The last two pictures are taken by Octa, visit his facebook page STOVILA to know more about his collection of work.

It was a busy day but the joy of celebrating the wedding of two people that I know personally is above all of the works. One last but important thing,  I want to thank you Xtina, Etty, Raymond & my husband for helping me making the fruits skewers. 

me, in the middle with my lovely sisters Xtina & Raychel at the wedding party

Simple Cup Cake Topper

I made these cupcakes for my church's anniversary last week.
They were just simple, chocolate coffee cupcake with ganache frosting and coconut topping,
but by adding cupcake topper elevated the presentation.
I made the toppers by making the design at my computer, save the project as jpeg file, and printed them at Walgreens as photos. I cut them ( for 4x6 size yields 6 toppers), attached the lolly pop sticks with white label sticker.

Black Sweet Rice Cake

Last time in Indonesia, I bought ready to use black sweet rice flour.
When I was still in junior high school. My mom used to make the flour from the rice.
We bought the rice and brought them to a grinder store at traditional market.
Sometimes we need to dry the flour under the sun before we use it to make the cake.
So it is very convenient to have ready to use black rice flour (Tepung Ketan Hitam - Indonesia Language).

ready to use black sweet rice flour

When I made this cake, my mind was flying to my mom.
I used her recipe. Still remember her voice, "Jane, semua ukurannya 1/4 kg" (Jane, all the ingredients are 1/4 kg ). The cake will be little bit dense but still moist and soft.

Ingredients :

1/4 kg eggs (it's about 4-5 eggs)
1 tsp of emulsifier
1/4 kg white sugar
1 cup melted margarine or vegetable oil
1/4 kg black rice flour

Method :
1. Preheat oven to 350 F, grease one bundt cake pan.
2. In a large bowl beat eggs, sugar and emulsifier until fluffy.
3. Add  melted margarine or vegetable oil, stir until well blended.
4. Add the flour gradually, do not over stir.
5. Spread the batter into the pan.
6. Bake for  25-30 minutes, until the wooden pick inserted near the center comes out clean.

I really enjoy this cake ...I love it.  Especially the memory behind this cake is never be forgotten.

Crustless Cranberry Pie

Fall season has arrived...
Fall color is always be my favorite.
My son also loves the crunchy sound of the leaves and plays with them.

taken by my husband from his cellphone

taken by my husband from his cellphone

As autumn is coming,  we can find cranberries  every where.
We are new to cranberries, my husband thought it can be eaten directly.
But apparently the fresh one is different than the dried one.

Cranberry has tangy flavor that should be balanced by creaminess or sweetness.
I browsed cranberry cake, cranberry pie, cranberry tart...etc.
Finally I decided to make Crustless Cranberry Pie from allrecipes.com. From more than 500 reviews, this recipe gets 4.5 stars.
Super easy to make and the result was soooo gooood....
I think we can substitute cranberry with strawberry, blueberry or other fresh fruit.


This recipe is for 9 inches pie : Original Recipe from Allrecipes.com

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups cranberries
1/2 cup chopped walnuts  --- i skipped this
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 eggs
1 teaspoon almond extract --- i use vanilla extract, I ran out of almond extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease one 9 inch pie pan.
2. Combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Stir in the cranberries and the walnuts, and toss to coat. Stir in the butter, beaten eggs, and almond extract. If you are using frozen cranberries, the mixture will be very thick. Spread the batter into the prepared pan.

3. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 40 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted near the center comes out clean. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream.

COLD BREW ICE COFFEE

I read The Pioneer Woman  website and found out how to make perfect ice coffee. 

Ree  introduced  the recipe from Imbibe Magazine, a beverage magazine. Honestly that was the first time I knew about this magazine. 

I browsed this magazine website and also found step by step how to make ice coffee article.

One of the method is using cold brew method. 

It is really similar to maceration method of extraction. I remember the day I was in collage, especially  when I learned at organic chemistry and natural chemistry laboratory. We often use this method to make concentrate from dry plants or any powder material to isolate the ingredient that is soluble in the solution we use. 

One of benefit of cold brew is the lower amount of acid in the coffee. "Some see cold brew’s
minimal acidity as a prime selling point. “It’s gentler on the stomach and it tastes mellow, chocolaty and nutty,” says Scott Rao, author of The Professional Barista’s Handbook: An Expert’s Guide to Preparing Espresso, Coffee, and Tea and founder of Rao’s Coffee and Esselon Café in western Massachusetts. That smooth, sweet quality has won a lot of people over. Some coffeehouses proudly advertise that they sell cold-brewed iced coffee and, while it can be made at home with a mason jar and a fine sieve, or even a French press, companies like Toddy Products and Filtron manufacture home-brewing systems specifically designed for cold-steeping. The process creates a coffee concentrate that’s lengthened with more water or milk before serving, similar to New Orleans-style iced coffee.

The makers of the Toddy system, which was developed in the ’60s, claim that cold-brewed coffee has 67 percent less acid than hot-brewed coffee. Others like it because it avoids the risky business of pairing hot coffee with ice. “I use [cold brew] for iced coffee because the chlorogenic acid in hot coffee breaks down to form quinic and caffeic acids as the coffee cools, causing the coffee to taste sour,” Rao says.

But considering that hot-brewed iced coffee can be anything but sour if it’s made right, the battle of cold brew versus hot brew might be merely a clash of tastes. To find out which method you prefer, follow our instructions for preparing coffee both ways and let your palate be your guide." (Source: Imbibe Magazine Website)

I tried 1/4 amount of Ree's recipe. I remember in my pantry, I still have 4 oz roasted coffee from my visit to KRI Dewaruci (one of Indonesian Tall Ship)  last July when there was a Tall Ships Exhibition at Fish Pier in Boston, Massachusetts. 

Bellow is The Pioneer Woman's Recipe. You can print this recipe from her website.

Ingredients

• 1 pound Ground Coffee (good, Rich Roast)
• 8 quarts Cold Water
• Half-and-half (healthy Splash Per Serving)
• Sweetened Condensed Milk (2-3 Tablespoons Per Serving)
• Note: Can Use Skim Milk, 2% Milk, Whole Milk, Sugar, Artificial Sweeteners, Syrups...adapt To Your Liking!

Preparation Instructions

(Adapted from Imbibe Magazine)

In a large container, mix ground coffee with water. Cover and allow to sit at room temperature eight hours or overnight. ----> I let it sit overnight. 

Line a fine mesh strainer with cheesecloth and set over a pitcher or other container. Pour coffee/water mixture through the strainer, allowing all liquid to run through. Discard grounds. ---> my method, I line my strainer with several pieces of coffee maker filter paper.

Place coffee liquid in the fridge and allow to cool. Use as needed.  To make iced coffee, pack a glass full of ice cubes. Fill glass 2/3 full with coffee liquid. Add healthy splash of half-and-half. Add 2-3 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk (can use plain sugar instead) and stir to combine. Taste and adjust half-and-half and/or sweetened condensed milk as needed.

My husband loves the taste off the coffee... This is the way for saving money on ice coffee.
As a wife  I love saving ;-) .  

Apple's Favor

Fall is coming soon.
Apple picking season has just begun.
We can enjoy its favor in this season :-)
I'm trying to use apple in many kind of my dishes.
Just simply toss sliced apple into my salad is giving texture and goodness.
Insert sliced apple layering your sandwich is like adding something healthy into it.
Hmmm.... just love to maximized the usages of apples.
My favorites are Fuji & Gala.

I made simple dessert using vanilla yogurt, granola, raisin and dried coconut.
It was so good. Crunchy, sweet, tangy...

Having brunch with apple cheddar bagel with cinnamon sugar touch is satisfying.
I toasted 2 mini cinnamon raisin bagels using my bread toaster (original recipe said to toast the bagels with butter and cinnamon sugar). On mini skillet I heat 1/2 teaspoon of butter, and then put sliced apple and add cinnamon sugar. After that just assemble sliced cheddar and apple on top toasted bagel.  For those I cut sliced cheese into 4 equal squares. I got those recipes from Better Home Garden Magazine August & September editions,

Rainbow Fever

I was told by my sister in Indonesia, there are many things with rainbow color there. Starting from rainbow cake, and then cookies and many other things. I just found one thing with  "rainbowy" color in my kitchen. 

My son's fruit loops cereal....

Transfering My Multiply Site to Blogspot

(Indistafel Restaurant Bandung)

Some of my previous entries are my recipe from my multiply site.
So sad finally multiply.com will stop blogging  feature from their site.
I still have time until December 2012 to move the contents of my multiply account.
There are lots of memories there. I learn blogging and meeting many online friends from this site.

So... it's better to keep my notes and recipes note and transfer them here.
If you see (From Multiply) as the title of my blog, you'll find my old notes from multiply.

By the way, sometimes seeing something old is a pleasant experience too.
My multiply site is not as vintage as these things...but I enjoy seeing my old site, especially I can see progress of my food photos.

(Indistafel Restaurant Bandung)


UPDATED October 2nd 2012 :  Finally I decided to move my multipy recipes to the other  JANE'S KITCHEN  FROM MULTIPLY BLOG.  I've been deleting all posting from multiply in this blog address. 

Granola, Raisin & Chocolate Chips Mix

Just because I see sale item at supermarket, I can make an impulse buying. #not so good habit :-)
Like today... I saw granola is on sale, I bought them too.

Granola is a good source of fiber and vitamin.
It makes us fuller longer.
We can use granola as a breakfast, eat it with milk or yoghurt.
We also can make as a hot breakfast by cooking it with some milk.

Usually I eat granola in a form of a bar snack.
Today I tried to make just a mix of granola, raisin and chocolate chips.
I mixed 3 parts of granola, 1 part of raisin and 1 part of chocolate chips.
I put them in a jar. Now I have ready to eat healthy snack. Portion wise is needed of course.

Summer Goodness

I really enjoy this season when many kinds of fruits are less expensive.
My son also loves to have fruits as his snacks.
Fresh & healthy..
I love fruits...

One of the place I like to visit to find fresh fruits is Fiddlehead Farms Market, Dover NH.
This place is not big, but the atmosphere is so homey. They also carry fresh farm milk in the glass bottle. They are so good with many choices of flavor such as blueberry, strawberry, mocha and chocolate.

My little Jev loves sour fruit. I thought he needs extra sugar to eat raspberry or blackberry.
He can enjoy the whole fruit without making 'silly' face because of the sour taste.
Sometimes he is not patients enough to wait the fruit being rinsed. Thank God his stomach is just fine.

He almost turning 3 years old.  I don't teach him to pose, but now naturally he can act while I'm clicking my camera.

I think his favorite fruits are berries family.

Lontong (Rice Cake)

Two weeks ago, I wanted to make oxtail soup. I almost cancelled making that considering the time. At least I had to cook it for about 3 hours. I just remembered last thanksgiving I bought a new pressure cooker pan that was still in its box. Making long story short, I used that pan to cook oxtail soup...in one hour my husband's favorite soup was ready.

After that day, I'm curious to use that pan again and again. I made rice porridge, chicken and mung beans.

Several days ago I made lontong. Lontong is rice cake wrapped by banana leaves. Usually we need 3-4 hours cooking time. I got recipe from my friend. She used to cook it about 10 minutes with pressure cooker. But for me, I needed 30 minutes. It might be due to the quality of the pan :-). I bought inexpensive one.

Usually we can eat lontong with curry (either it's white or yellow), satay with peanut sauce, tofu with peanut sauce and many other dishes we can eat with lontong.

Anyway here's the recipe :

Ingredients :
1.5 cups uncooked rice
2.5 cups water (depend to the rice type)
1/2 tsp salt

Methods:
1.  Rinse the rice, and put them into a pan (not the pressure cooker one) with the water and salt. Cook until the rice absorb the water. Put aside.

2.  Cut banana leaves around letter size paper, and also put  half smaller size of the leaf on top of the first layer, put the rice in the middle, try to make a long shape and roll and wrap it. Close the edge using toothpick or stapler.  ( I can make 5 pcs)

3. Put the wrapped rice into the pressure cooker add some water until the cake is merged. (follow the instruction from your manual book of the  pressure cooker). For me it's 30 minutes cooking time.

4. Enjoy Lontong when it is fully cool.