My 31st Birthday Cake

<cake ft. sheet pan I had to bring to restauraunt>

This year, I decided that I wanted to bake my own birthday cake. It was my 31st birthday in April and wanted to give a small gift to myself. I had baked a couple of cakes for special occasions and friends so why not do one for me. We had a dim sum lunch booked with family so my goal was to bake the cake (sponge, cream, filling component) before then. I settled on a vanilla sheet cake using, whipped cream frosting (my Asian parents can’t have anything but) and lime curd + strawberry jam as the fillings inside the layers.

<mini cake on a plate i made!>

It was my first time baking a sheet pan cake and it was very doable! I lined my cake pan with acetate to get the cake height I wanted and after cutting out the cake layers, had a whole container of cake scraps I snacked on for a week after. I chose a Vanilla Sheet Cake Recipe that used cake flour instead of AP because I wanted a lighter crumb, and ended up decreasing the sugar content (from 395g→347g of sugar) in the original recipe. The lime curd recipe I used was the easiest curd I have ever made, and really liked that I did not have to separate or waste the egg whites. I used this Lime Curd Recipe. I really like tart/sour things so it was perfect for me and thought that it complemented the sweetness of the cake well. I decided to use dairy free whipping cream and thought my cake was ruined because the heavy cream did not really whip. I had only bought 1 at the market thinking everything would be fine, but the whip cream was not as fluffy as I expected it to be. I stored the finished cake in the fridge for ~12 hours and that did help the cream set.

My cake layers were:

Layer 1: sponge | tomato vanilla syrup | lime curd | cream

Layer 2: sponge | tomato vanilla syrup | strawberry jam | cream

Layer 3: sponge | tomato vanilla syrup | lime curd | cream + blueberries on top

Everyone was full from dim sum so not much cake was eaten, but my parents did take it back home. I hope I make a better cake fo rmyself next year!

Buckwheat Cookies

This cookie recipe uses bread flour, cake flour, and buckwheat flour and I found that this combination of flours gives the best bite to any cookie. I use this recipe as a base for any dark cookie! These cookies can be eaten after making but taste the best after 2-3 days in the fridge. I freeze the cookies into dough balls so that I can pop into the oven at any time for a quick snack—take the cookies out of freezer to defrost (~1hr) and pop into the oven at 350 degrees for around 12-15 minutes. I mean, I have had them straight from freezer to oven, but they take a little longer so just keep an eye on them!

• 200g white sugar

• 150 brown sugar

• 120 dark brown sugar

• 2 sticks of butter 226g

• 2 eggs

• 2 vanilla tsp

• 300g cake flour

• 80g bread flour

• 70g buckwheat flour

• 2 tsp diamond crystal salt

• 1 tsp of baking soda

• Optional: chocolate chips, sesame seeds, walnuts

1. Sift flour salt and baking soda together

2. Cream butter and sugar

3. Add eggs and vanilla

4. Add in flour

5. Roll into balls, Keep in fridge for 3-4 days and then freeze

6. Bake at 350 deg for 12-15 mins

• *roll balls in sesame seeds for extra flavor and texture