Lemon Chiffon Layered Cake with Salted Candied Caramel as garnish

Oh man ): I am so bad at updating my blog on a regular time schedule. School has to take a big blame for it though. Warning to self: never take 16 units in a quarter again!.. And it's not like I have to. I have plenty of time before I graduate. WHY did i do it?!?! >[ I have been baking deprived since summer. Definitely not food deprived though! Snacks have become my lovely companion during these "studious" hours(:

The back to back midterm madness is not over for another 4 weeks. But the fact that I will be off to HONG KONG right after finals keep me motivated to power through! I am ecstatic to visit HK since I have only been back once after I moved to the US 10 years ago. I miss the good food, the family, the friends, and the hectic-ness. I am already dreaming over all the food I can eat (i.e., egglettes, fish meat shui mai, curry fishballs) and worrying about the limited stomach capacity. I wish my stomach can just expand during my time there. Hehe :p *Definitely check back on my blog for all the places I will be visiting and all the food I will be eating in Hong Kong*

Back to this post, I will try my best to.. remember how this cake turned out :p



Lemon Chiffon Cake
(forgot where I got this recipe :p)
- makes a 9" round cake
(I halved all the ingredients and made a tall 6" cake for layering)

8 eggs
1/4cup walnut oil
1tbsp lemon juice
1tbsp lemon zest
1/3cup water
1/2tsp cream of tartar
1 and 1/2cup sugar
1 and 3/4cup cake flour
1/2tsp baking soda
1/2tsp salt

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Whisk yolk, oil, juice, zest and water together.
3. Whip whites with tartar on medium speed till light and frothy. Add 1/2cup sugar to the whites and continue whipping till soft peaks.
5. Sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt. Whisk and make a well. Add yolk and mix till a smooth paste-y texture.
6. Add 1/4 whipped whites to the flour mixture and fold. Add remaining whites and continue to fold.
7. Bake for 16 minutes at 350F. (I baked for around 35 minutes)



The cake itself turned out well for layering purposes. It was a sturdy yet light in tasting cake. I think it complements well with the creamy whipped cream. Overall, this cake did not stand out or leave too much of an impression. It was ordinary. I didn't mind the cake but I probably would want to try another recipe next time.

Also to give this cake another textural dimension, I tossed some toasted coconut in between the layers and on top(:



Salted Candied Caramel
1 and 1/4cup sugar
1/4tsp sea salt
3/4cup water
2-4tbsp large crystal sugar

1. To prep: spray parchment with oil. (I recommend using a silicon mat for this) Fill sink with ice water.
2. Combine sugar, salt and water in pot. Put over low heat. Swirl pot.
3. When sugar has caramelized. Remove pot from heat and plunge in ice water.
4. After the caramel has slightly cool. Drizzle over parchment paper.
5. Remove from parchment and use as garnish once caramel has cooled off completely.


^the ones that were stuck on the parchment :P

I had lots of fun making the candied caramel (first timer). It was almost magical how it can just hardens and elevates the look of my cake instantly. Though they worked out nicely (no burnt pieces), they were kind of inedible. A little Hard and chewy and sticky.. I think I could've drizzle them in lighter and thinner strokes. But that's that.. they were mostly for the looks anyways. And also one thing to note is that I was not able to remove the caramels from those that were drizzled on the parchment paper :X But it worked out.. cause I really didn't have use for that many. I would probably halved this recipe next time I use it. And get the caramel to a more caramel color before taking them off the heat. I was being over cautious to not over- harden them.

Taste: 3 stars out of 5 (Nothing spectacular; toasted coconut always tastes good)
Texture: 3 stars out of 5 (Dense and light at the same time; great for layering and goes well with whipped cream)