I'm no Nigella Lawson but i was mighty proud of what I've made for Small K on his first birthday which was just over last weekend. For those of you who don't know, I can't bake for nuts; I don't own any fancy baking kitchen aids; i don't know the difference between folding and mixing; i use a hand whisk and I'm secretly fantasizing that I'm a whizz and can bake pretty sweets. However, truth be told, ever since my younger days, I've never been successful at baking. They mostly turn out rock rock hard or burnt.
So it never really occurred to me that i should and would bake for da boy. However, the boy has a mild allergy towards eggs and eggless cakes cost an arm and a leg! Hence i was determined to unleash this "talent" of mine. And i succeeded!!
Here's sharing my recipe for Milo Tiramisu:
Ingredients (Makes a 9 inch cake)
- 400ml of whipping cream
- 500g Mascarpone cheese, bring to room temp
- 3 to 4 tbsp of condensed milk (you can reduce or increase depending on the level of sweetness which you'd like)
- ladyfinger biscuits (i lost count but i must have used at least 50 to 60 pieces?)
- 1 cup of milo. I did not add any sugar to it
- 2-3 tbsp Milo powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Whip the whipping cream until stiff, adding the condensed milk halfway.
Do not over whip. Approximately 5 minutes will do. Once you achieved a soft peak, Stop.
Put the mascarpone cheese into another mixing bowl and slowly fold in the whipped cream.
Dip the ladyfinger biscuits into the cup of milo and arrange them neatly. Don't oversoak as they will turn soggy easily. Also, need not worry about the little gaps in between. It will be filled up with the cream.
Smoothen on a layer of the cheese mixture and dust on some sieved milo powder. Repeat this for the next 2 layers. I did 3 layers in total but you can always adjust accordingly.
Put it into the fridge for approximately 1 to 2 hours and take it out to place the biscuits round the circumference and pop it back into the fridge again. This is to allow the whole cake to set. It needs to be refrigerated for approximately 6 to 8 hours but due to the lack of time, i only managed to have it in for 4hours. Luckily it didn't turn out too bad.
Tie a ribbon round the cake as a form of decoration. If you are looking for a totally eggless one, you might need to bake the sponge cake yourself.
Tadah!!! my end product! Mighty proud of myself! The in-laws and those who ate were kind enough to say that it was nice. Not too sweet. Yay! N you know what? I gave Small K a few bites and he didn't break out in rash!!! guess the eggs in the ladyfingers weren't that potent! Yippee!
It's really quite insane how time flies..cliche i know. But with two, everyday seems to be a rush. This is especially so when I'm mostly a one man (or woman) show. We have no helper and though the mother-in-law helps, she generally takes over in the afternoons after 2pm. Am thankful for that arrangement as it allows me to head out to bring some bacon back but then again, it means no quality time with each of my children. The guilt has been gnawing me for a while. I used to do so much with Big K. By 1yo she was rattling off so many words. But with Small K, i can see a significant difference. The difference is so startling that recently my hubby has asked me why haven't i done any homeschooling with the kid. By this age, I've already brought Big K for playgroups but with Small K, the only playgroup is probably with the neighbour which happens only once a month perhaps. Apart from time, to be honest, money is a factor. Education for young children is so damn expensive! And the burden lies on me because the dear husband doesn't believe in paying money for such stuff. He feels that kids will naturally learn by going to the playground or by playing marbles with the neighbors. What he doesn't realise is, he doesn't bring them to the playground all that often! And even if he does, he'll be leaving them to their own devices while he engages in a battle on mobile. Yes, his addiction to mobile games is getting to me. Recently, my father-in-law also asked if I've been teaching the boy! Gosh! These men don't used to be so anxious! In fact, they think that is natural progression and the kid will automatically know their ABCs by the time they reach Primary 1! So yes, i really should get my act together. These days whenever I've pockets of time, and we are only talking about 10mins here or 20mins there, I would either be pumping and catching up on half an episode of my drama or surfing the net. Social media and the Internet can really be evil but yet again, it's necessary to keep in touch with the world. To me at least.
So dear son, please give me some time, I'm sure I'll get something done for you. Slowly but surely. Meanwhile, turning one is really awesome and I'm so blessed and happy to have you in my life. You are my miracle child and my happy pill. I pray for your good health and may life be filled with lots of blessings!
