Baking Class 2 : Phoon Huat

Ever since the last lesson at Phoon Huat@Sims Lane, I have been on the look out for other interesting classes. 

( Do check out my earlier post "Baking Class : Phoon Huat" -Wed, 12 december 2014 )

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This time, I learnt to make X'mas log cake with parfait chocolate truffle & durian filling and X'mas Old fashioned boil fruit cake . 

 Sounds Delicious!

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The class started with the log cake.

Whipping huge amount of eggs, flour, sugar, sponge gel, water and trehalose to double its original volume. 

This makes for a fluffy spongy cake.

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The balloon whisk was so fast, some egg yolk splattered out of the bowl!

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Then, I poured the gooey, chocolaty cake mix onto a flat baking tray, so the cake can be easily rolled into a Swiss roll for the log cake.

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Into the oven it goes!

Approximately 15 minutes later, the rich smell of cocoa wafted through the kitchen, as ridges formed on the surface of the cake, signaling that it was almost ready.

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Next, the fruit cake!

Since there was only one stove in the kitchen, Chef Patrick (the man on the left) prepared the fruit beforehand. Yay!

Since this kitchen is Halal, the fruits used were boiled instead of brandy-soaked.

The fruits used included pineapple, apple, apricot, 

orange strip and orange puree.

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Now we have to create a "house" for the fruits.

 With butter, sugar, treacle and eggs, it was mixed to a creamy consistency. Then flour, baking powder, and mixed spices with added.

With the "house" done, the fruits moved in. :)

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And of course, there is a "housewarming party" for all new fruit residents!

Makes the fruit-sidents warm and cosy in their new homes, eh? 

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Now back to the log cake.

Whipping Cream is whipped until stiff peaks formed. Then, melted chocolate is mixed in the whipped cream to form the Chocolate Truffle Filling!

Be careful, though. Overbeating the whipped cream with chocolate would make it seize, and it would be too hard.

To fix this problem, just warm it slightly on a double warmer.

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Now, the treasure of the log cake : Durian Filling!

Durian meat is mixed with sugar and whipped cream, and frozen for easy handling.

The filling is the huge block of white the chef is holding.

Durian isn't as bad as some people think. It is really creamy, thick, floral and sweet. The smell is not bad either. It is mouthwatering, and has a sweet and flowery scent.

As shown above, Chef Patrick demonstrates how to assemble the log cake.

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First, spread chocolate truffle filling generously.

Next, cut durian filling to fit the cake nicely, as shown in the pictures.

Finally, roll the cake as tightly as you can, and the log cake base (swiss roll) is done!

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Then, just cut the swiss roll to fit the cake cardboard base, and decorate to look like a log cake.

Chef Patrick expertly shows off his deft hand skills by applying a uniform layer of whipped cream on the swiss roll, and texturing it with a fork.

Suddenly, he grabs the cardboard with one hand, and confidently pipes lovely, swirling patterns on the cake!

Wow!

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So, here's Chef Patrick's log cake...

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...And here's mine.
Not bad, I must say.

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So, it is done.

X'mas log cake with parfait chocolate truffle & durian filling and 

X'mas Old fashioned boil fruit cake . 

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And this is how it looks like nicely packed...

Yay! Another mission accomplished! 

Overall, the log cake was great! It was not too sweet, and had a smooth, creamy, fragrant durian filling! The velvety and rich chocolate filling will never be enough for me, however, I feel that there is too much whipped cream. This log cake would taste better without the outside whipped cream.

The fruit cake was one of the nicest I've ever eaten! The taste of boiled fruit cake compared to brandy fruit cake sold in supermarkets is almost similar! There were too much fruits though, I couldn't really taste the cake. Also, the cake was a little dry and crumbly. But it was nice to be able to make something I thought I would never be able to make!