romantic red velvet cupcakes: along's wedding anniversary

i baked these red velvet cupcakes yesterday.. ini utk along - kawan sama tempat kerja.. balik jek dr bangi smalam (bawak bak gi berubat) terus cik ayu mem'baking'. these cupcakes are for her wedding anniversary today... hopefully along suka ye.. =)

15pcs all together

it's their 10th anniversary... *kagum!*

zoom in...

p/s: jannah tak sihat... demam, batuk, selsema... =(

my first red velvet cake

dah lama cik ayu nak bake cake nih.. tp slalu takde masa (ececehceehh). cik ayu teringin nak buat since last year; konon2 nak buat as cake to celebrate my anniversary.. pasal merah2 ni kan nampak mcm romantik gitu.. hahhahaha..
so this is the result.. *honestly, i love Devil's Food Choc Cake more.. =)*
a slice for bak..

so here is the recipe i've followed.

Red Velvet Cake Recipe

Source: Joyofbaking

2 1/2 cups (250 grams) sifted cake flour (I used normal flour)

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons (15 grams) cocoa powder

1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups (300 grams) granulated white sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk – see recipe below

2 tablespoons liquid red food coloring

1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder (I added this too)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Butter two – 9 inch (23 cm) round cake pans and line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl sift together the flour, salt, and cocoa powder. Set aside.

In bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until soft (about 1-2 minutes). Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the vanilla extract and beat until combined.

In a measuring cup whisk the buttermilk with the red food coloring. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk to the butter mixture, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour.

In a small cup combine the vinegar and baking soda. Allow the mixture to fizz and then quickly fold into the cake batter.

Working quickly, divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans and smooth the tops with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 25 – 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean. Cool the cakes in their pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Place a wire rack on top of the cake pan and invert, lifting off the pan. Once the cakes have completely cooled, wrap in plastic and place the cake layers in the freezer for at least an hour. (This is done to make filling and frosting the cakes easier.)

Buttermilk Recipe

Add 1 tablespoon of white distilled vinegar, cider vinegar, or lemon juice to 1 cup (240 ml) of milk. Let this mixture stand 5 to 10 minutes before using.

Cream Cheese Frosting

250ml whipping cream

200ml cream cheese

1/2 cup confectioner sugar

Mix everything in a big bowl and whip the cream until stiff peaks formed.

*(I used the recipe in Devil's Food Choc Cake)

Assemble: With a serrated knife, cut each layer in half, horizontally. You will now have four layers. Place one of the cake layers, top of the cake facing down, onto your serving platter. Spread the cake layer with a layer of frosting. Place another layer of cake on top of the frosting and continue to frost and stack the cake layers. Frost the top and sides of the cake. Can garnish the cake with sweetened or unsweetened coconut.

Makes one- 9 inch (23 cm) four layer cake.

p/s: mmg sah la kamera cik ayu ni ala2 nak rosak.. pasan tak each picture macam ala2 kabur kat one part nih (somewhere in the middle) *sigh*

bagaimana cik ayu pilih kaler cat rumah!

nak cakap colour choice cik ayu tu perfect, tak la jugak... tp cik ayu just nak share pengalaman cik ayu masa nak pilih kaler cat rumah ni.. =) semoga dpt membantu anda..

1. sekiranya anda ada niat nak pasang wallpaper/ wallcovering, sila pilih wallpaper/ wallcovering dulu then baru pilih kaler cat yg sesuai.. sbb wallpaper/ wallcovering ni choice dia sgt limited.. tak semua colour range ada.. sedangkan cat ni ada lebih 1000 kaler. so adalah lebih senang utk padankan kaler cat dgn wallpaper/ wallcovering dari nak padankan kaler wallpaper/wall covering dgn kaler cat.

2. mmg susah nak padankan kaler.. lg2 utk cik ayu yg kurang ilmu dlm interior design nih.. google2 pon tak bnyk info yg dpt membantu.. seb baik cik ayu jumpa website ni. bukan nak promote ICI Dulux, tp ni yg cik ayu rasa.. =) normally utk satu ruang kite akan buat dua warna, nak bg nampak ada depth.. masalahnya warna ape sesuai dgn warna ape? website ni bg cadangan warna utk kite; favourite colour scheme, toning, contrasting & harmonising.. contohnye kat sini..

3. ada satu masalah ngan tip no 2; anda mungkin takkan jumpa semua kaler dr standard katalog cat mcm yg ni.. so, cik ayu sarankan anda mintak dgn pembekal cat paint chip yg mcm dlm gambar kat bawah ni..

InsyaAllah anda akan jumpa kaler yg anda mahukan.. tp diingatkan, confirmkan dulu pilihan kaler anda dlm langkah ke-2. kalau tak sure anda rambang mata!

4. finally, untuk jenis cat. jgn gunakan cat yg ada kesan 'berkilat' (kalau untuk ICI Dulux - PearlGlo) utk dinding yg tidak perfectly rata. sebab ini akan menampakkan kecacatan tersebut. to be safe, pilih jenis cat yg kaler nya 'matte', takde kesan 'berkilat'.

rasa2 nya itu je kot.. yg teringat di kepala nih.. hehe..

'aqila's mini cakes: pink & green

salam semua...
hasil tangan cik ayu yg ni sangat2 la latest nye.. (apa nye bahasa la ni..) baru jek siap 30 minit yg lalu.. hehe...
mini cakes nih utk adik 'aqila, adik kat opis cik ayu.. majlis nya hujung minggu ni.. harap2 segalanya berjalan dgn lancar.. sorry kakak mu ini tak dapat nak dtg (seperti yg telah dijelaskan kat opis siang td.. huhu). apa2 pon doa kakak sentiasa mengiringi awak.. =)

harap awak suka mini cakes nye ye... =)

p/s: cik ayu rasa kamera cik ayu mcm menunjukkan tanda2 nak rosak... *sigh*

warna2 pilihan cik ayu.. =)

alhamdulillah... akhirnya, rumah cik ayu dah siap dicat.. skang dah tak pening2 kepala lg.. kalau tak tu everyday dok tgk catalog cat.. pening nak pilih kaler.. and finally, inilah kaler2 nye.. cik ayu pilih kaler - cool neutral: shades of grey..

camne blh pilih kaler ni? camni, masa cik ayu gi kedai jual wallpaper ari tu, cik ayu berkenan ngan satu wallpaper nih.. kena ngan theme cik ayu ~ modern classic =) cehwaahhh.. wallpaper tu kaler grey (lupa nak snap gambar masa kat kedai tu).. so kalau nak amek wallpaper tu, kaler dinding pon kena la matching kan? so.. sbb tu la cik ayu pilih kaler ni.. meh kite tgk meh..

this is for the living room - Song Porcelain (Pearl Glo) by ICI Dulux

yg kat dinding naik tangga tu cik ayu guna tone yg gelap sket - Roma Haze (Pearl Glo) by ICI Dulux

for the kitchen - Touch of Grey (Pentalite Easy Clean) by ICI Dulux

sneak peek utk kitchen cik ayu =) contactor dah pasang kabinet tp table top blom masuk lg.

bilik bawah - Soothing White (Light & Space) by ICI Dulux

bilik 1 (tingkat atas) - Pacific Breeze (Light & Space) by ICI Dulux

bilik 2 (tingkat atas) - Morning Blend (Light & Space) by ICI Dulux.. cadang2 nya ni akan jd bilik Jannah =)

master bedroom - Soft Fleece (Pentalite Easy Clean) by ICI Dulux

so ini lah kaler2 yg akan menemani hidup kami sekeluarga sehingga la ada bajet nak cat baru.. (huhu.. ada hati lg tuh..) nanti cik ayu share tips on how to choose the colour, dan juga tips tentang jenis cat yg mcm mana sesuai utk rumah anda =)