Mia Makes: Potato Cheese Mochi Cakes

Potato, Mochi and Cheese. All mish-mashed into one. Yay or Nay?

 

It's definitely a big YAY for me, so let's get over with the ingredients to get started!

Potato Mochi: 
~400g potatoes, raw. 
110 - 120g glutinous rice flour
4 - 5 tablespoon water (or milk) 
salt & pepper to taste
(I've used 1 tsp salt + 1/2 tsp pepper and it was still pretty bland) 

Filling:
Cheese, or anything else you fancy
(I've used shredded cheddar & mozzarella mix, but I'll highly recommend adding some Parmesan for flavour).

First up, wash and peel your potatoes and cut them into thin slices (such that they'll cook quickly) and steam them until they're fully cooked and soft. It's better to steam than boil, as the latter will introduce a lot of unnecessary moisture to the potato, and you'll end up adding a lot more flour to make up for it. 

Once your potato slices are fully cooked until soft and tender, mash them up using either a fork or a potato masher/ricer. Do it while they're still hot as they'll be easier to mash up while still hot from the steamer. Then, leave it to cool slightly (until you can handle them with your hands) before adding in the glutinous rice flour. 

As different potatoes will have different water content, I'll suggest that you'll start with just 100g of the flour first, along with half the water/milk and move forward from there. Just make sure you're left with a dough ball that's smooth and pliable, and doesn't really stick to your hands, and you're good to go!

Then, portion your dough into equal pieces (I did 40g balls for mine) and keep them under a damp tea towel or cling wrap to prevent them from drying out. Take a piece of the dough ball and flatten it slightly into a disc with your palm. Using your thumb, slowly press out from the centre of the disc and shape the dough ball into a bowl shape. Then add in your choice of filling into the centre of the "bowl" before pressing the edges together to seal. Do make sure you pinch the seams tightly such that your fillings will not leak out while cooking. Then, give the wrapped up dough ball a quick roll in between your palms to smoothen out the crease and flatten it back into a small disc before putting it back under the cling wrap/tea towel while working on the rest of the dough balls. 
Once all the dough balls are filled and shaped, it's time to cook them! 

Spray down your non-stick pan generously with some non-stick cooking spray or simply add about 1 tablespoon of cooking oil to it and put it on medium heat. Once the oil has heated up, put in your mochi cakes and allow to cook on low/medium heat for about 5 minutes on each side, or until the surface is golden brown and the cakes soft and marshmallowy to the touch. You should also be able to smell a lovely fried potato fragrance, another indication that your cakes are done!

Be careful not to overcook these mochi cakes, else your cheese filling might burst out. 

That's what you'll get if you fill your mochi cakes with shredded mozzarella, look at that string of melty cheese! <3

Absolutely love the soft and chewy potato mochi with melty and gooey cheese in the centre. Other than the slight blandness in flavour, this was so good! 

Till then,

Mia Foo

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Mia Bakes: Boiled Christmas Fruit Cake

 Growing up, our family has never ever celebrated Christmas Day and naturally, I do not join my friends' Christmas parties, nor return the favour should they get me any Christmas presents. To me, Christmas Day has always been just-another-PH on the calender, until very recently I realised that the yummy, dense and boozy "fruit cake" that is ridiculously jam-packed with dried fruits (so much so that there's more fruits than cake), which my paternal grandma used to bake for us from time to time, is actually called a Christmas fruitcake! 

Traditionally, Christmas fruitcakes are baked and aged for up to a month before they're iced/wrapped in marzipan to seal the deal. But I actually believe they taste way better without the marzipan (not a fan), and neither had my grandma ever iced her fruitcakes, so.... nay, skip that!

Disclaimer, the recipe I'm sharing is NOT my grandma's recipe though. I didn't manage to learn any of my grandma's amazing recipes (her legendary fruit cake and pies, and even the CNY snack, honeycomb!)  as back then I was much younger and had no interests whatsoever in anything that happens in the kitchen, but I vaguely remembered that she needs to soak her fruits for (at least?) a week in alcohol before proceeding to make the cake. 

Why wait another week when you can make it on the spot, as and when you want to, right? 

So let's get over with the ingredients, so we can get started!

To get a 5" round tin plus a loaf pan sized cakes, you'll need:

180g plain flour

100g almond flour 

100g muscovado brown sugar

250g unsalted butter 

(or you can replace up to half with unsweetened applesauce)

4 eggs 

(mine were about 55g out of the shells)

700 - 750g chopped dried fruits of your choice

(I used a mixture of dried mixed fruits, sultanas, yellow raisins, chopped apricots and red cherries)

100g almond strips/flakes

120ml liqueur of choice, plus more for feeding 

(I typically use either Cognac or Benedictine DOM) 

120ml orange juice

zest of 1 orange

1 tsp ground cinnamon

2 tsp mixed spice

1/4 tsp ground clove

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg 

(you may omit clove or nutmeg, but cinnamon and mixed spice are a MUST!)

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp almond extract (optional)

First up, instead of soaking your dried fruits in the liqueur for 1 week, you... BOIL them. :)

In a fairly large pot over small fire, add in your butter and allow the butter to fully melt. Do stir it to prevent the butter from burning. Once the butter has fully melted, add in the applesauce (if you're using) and sugar, and mix until the sugar has dissolved. Then, add in the liqueur, orange juice and chopped dried fruit and let the mixture come to a weak boil over medium to high heat. Once the mixture starts to boil, turn down the heat and allow it to simmer for another 3 to 5 minutes, constantly stirring to prevent burning, before removing the pot from the hob and allowing it to cool.

Once the mixture has cooled (to a point where it won't scramble your eggs), add in your eggs, one at a time and mix well with a wooden spoon/spatula. Make sure that the egg is fully incorporated before you crack in the next one. 

Then, add in the flours, orange zest, spices and extracts and give it a quick mix until just combined.  

Fill up your prepared moulds (lined with parchment paper and spray down slightly with non-stick cooking spray) with the thick and gooey batter and bang them lightly over the countertop to even out the surface, before sending them to bake in an oven preheated to 170 degrees Celsius (160 if on fan mode) for around 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

And once out of the oven, leave them to cool down just slightly for 10 minutes or so before poking holes all over the surface of the cake (leave them in the moulds!) and spooning a tablespoonful of your liqueur directly over the top of the cake. Then, leave the cake to cool completely in the mould, before removing them and wrapping them up tightly in cling wrap, parchment paper and all, and storing them in the fridge for up to a month. 

If you're aging it for a full month, you can choose to feed your cake (with straight up liqueur or you may mix in a little orange juice if you wish) once or twice a week over the 4 weeks. But if you're reducing the aging process to just 2 weeks (like me), you can shorten your feeding intervals to once every 2 to 3 days. It really depends on how moist and boozy you want your cake to be. 

Due to the high alcoholic content, this cake stores really well.... for a LONG LONG time. I'm saying MONTHS and MONTHS in just the chiller (no freezing required!) 

And as for the applesauce+butter vs all butter variation, I would say that the applesauce not only reduce a hefty amount of calories from your cake, but also added a lot of moisture to the cake. In fact, I've fed my previous bake (all butter version) more than this version, but this was significantly softer and more moist. So if you're a fan of a gooey, moist and dense christmas fruitcake, I'll highly recommend that you give applesauce a try! 

Till then,

Mia Foo

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Getting Pretty Nails with Move Manicure [Sponsored]

 Love to have impeccably manicured nails, but simply too lazy to head out to the nail salon? 

Fret not, for Move Manicure will move (to) wherever you are, bringing the complete nail salon experience to your home.

Armed with a mobile station of nail polishes, accessory tools and even a foot soak basin, be rest assured that you will always get the best mani/pedi experience in the comfort of your home with Move Manicure. 

But of course, you got to provide the luxurious, comfy couch, pleasantly chilly air-conditioned room and the delightfully warm and clean foot soak water yourselves. HAHA!

But honestly speaking, kudos to the dedication of their manicurists for having to lug the big and heavy trolley of their polishes and tools, and a foot soak basin, to all corners of Singapore just to give you a mani/pedi in your home. 

Instead of the usual big brands, Move Manicure chose to use Nailise gel polishes instead, which is a relatively new line of nail products with a 13-free and vegan formula. No animal testing, yay! 

And this is the part of having a classic manicure that I always do not enjoy, getting my cuticles pushed back and excess overhang snipped off. There're times when some (less skillful?) manicurists got too obsessed with all the pushing and snipping that it starts to sting (or even bleed! T.T). But my manicurist with Move Manicure was both quick and light handed, yet thorough and meticulous.

And as one of my guy pal, R always say, "Out of all the females I know, you always have very unique looking nails (art design)." 

When I get my nails done, I'll always love to give my manicurist a good drawing challenge. But this time round, I have only myself to blame for a double-booking booboo and could only squeeze out 1 hour for the manicure. So there's definitely no time to attempt anything fancy and I was okay with just a solid coat of pink gel nails, but they were nice enough to offer doing at least something simple, in spite of me giving them only 1 hour. 

-credits to thepronails-

And so I thought, how about a glam up French nails with golden tip? 

But unfortunately, there wasn't any solid gold colour available in their stash of gel polishes, and I wasn't that keen on chrome or trying to achieve a clean tip with glitter polish, so I opted for glitter ombre instead. 

Really like how my manicurist was quick and yet thorough with her work, always double-checking and comparing the intensity of the glitter ombre from nail to nail to ensure the consistency. 

But she's also the first manicurist I've encountered, who looked totally at lost for what to do when I handed her my mobile phone and asked if she could help me take a picture (of my nails). 

It was a rather funny moment when she thought I wanted her to take a photo of ME. HAHA! 

Apart from the usual nail spa and mani/pedi, Move Manicure also provides mani/pedi packages catered for men and children. Apparently, they also provide nail services to elderly and may even offer discounted prices on a case-by-case basis. 

For more information on Move Manicure's services & pricelist or to book your appointment, visit their website or facebook page

Till then,

Mia Foo

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Getting my Cosmo Prime® Air Purifier + 3-in-1 HEPA filter with Liquid Gateway! [Sponsored]

 As a Danish proverb goes, fresh air keeps the doctor poor. 

And when is a better time to ensure that we're having fresh, clean air at home every single day, than now? 

So glad to be able to try out the Cosmo Prime® Air Purifier, which is rated as one of the best 8 air purifier in Singapore for cleaner indoor air by Best In Singapore for 2020. 

Cosmo Prime® Air Purifier + 3-in-1 HEPA filter - $399 (Usual RTP $538)

At a height of barely 50cm and a width/length of around 30cm, the Cosmo Prime® Air Purifier uses trademarked technology and smart design to provide a long-lasting, silent and powerful air purifier. 

Equipped with SilentMotor-VX, the Cosmo Air Purifier functions at a noise level of merely 20dB (soft whisper) with a coverage area of up to 80 square-metre. The air purifier uses medical grade H13 HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filter that is specially engineered to have pores that are up to 20 times finer than the average HEPA filters, which filters off 99.97% of all airborne particles of up to 0.1 microns, giving us cleaner indoor air. 

Not only that, but the air purifier's carbon filter layer is fitted with an anti-microbial agent unqiue to Cosmo, called Pet Guardian™. This feature works in tandem with the activated charcoal to effectively neutralise organic matter that causes foul odours from pets. 

Love the sleek and smooth design that fits into literally any home décor theme (or lack thereof). The small and compacted design also allows the gadget to fit easily into tight corners, hence saving up a lot of space in our small BTO flats these days. The negligible noise level of merely 20dB also means that there's no worry of any form of sleep disruption due to unwelcomed noises from the gadget. Our (old) air-conditioner makes a lot more noise than this air purifier! 

Even though I've started on online-shopping pretty early in the trend and has been buying literally everything off the internet since the pandemic, I'm still quite skeptical on the security when it comes to direct payment on the e-shop's platform using my credit card. Hence, I'm so glad to know that Cosmo relies on Liquid Gateway, which is rated as one of the 10 best online payment gateways in Singapore, to ensure that their customers' cards information is safe from potential attacks and frauds. 

Now I can shop freely with a peace of mind! 

For more information on Cosmo Prime® Air Purifier and their No Risk 20 Days Trial, visit their website HERE

Also, do check out BestInSingapore for more lists of the best of what Singapore has got to offer! 

All product styling photos credit to Cosmo

Till then,

Mia Foo

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Mia Bakes: Oreo White Rabbit Double Chocolate Cookies

It was a random day when I randomly thought, "it's been a long while since I've last baked some chocolate cookies..." and so a casual google search brought me over to cookiemadness.net and before I knew it, I was reading up a recipe for a subway copycat double chocolate cookie. 

But then, I wanted to use up the remaining 1/3 bag of my green banana flour, and the pack of not-very-nice chocolate peanut butter oreo cookies I've picked up from Sheng Shiong supermarket, which has gone stale in the packet. So, what would happen if I were to replace part of the plain flour with green banana flour, I wonder? Let's find out, shall we?

To get 14 to 18 large cookies, you'll need: 

100g plain flour
50g green banana flour 
40g unsweeten cocoa powder
115g unsalted butter, soften
80g brown sugar
50g castor sugar (I used stevia blend)
1 egg    
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking soda
14/ tsp salt
80g white rabbit candy
80g oreo biscuits
20g oreo biscuit crumbs
30g dark chocolate chunks

First up, chop up your white rabbit candies and lightly crush up your oreo cookies with your hands into large chunks (I did 5 to 6 pieces per cookie and realised I could have left them much chunkier). Set the aside. I've used the pre-packaged oreo cookie crumbs for the extra 20g of crumbs, but if you can't find it in stores, you can go ahead and crush up more cookies (no filling!) into fine crumbs, or simply leave them out. 

In a clean bowl, cream the soften butter and sugars together with a wooden spoon or spatula until quite pale and fluffy (you need not go crazy beating in tons of air with a handheld mixer). Then, mix in your egg and vanilla extract until well combined. Sift in the dry ingredients (if you're lazy, just sift the cocoa powder like I did) and fold until you're left with a few pockets of dry flours before folding in the candies/cookies chunks and crumbs/chocolate chunks until everything is just combined. 

There's no need to chill the dough as it'll be quite stiff (though still rather sticky), but you can definitely wrap them up in cling wrap and freeze them for up to a few weeks so there's no need to bake them all off at the same time. 

So with slightly oiled hands and a 1/4 cup measuring spoon sprayed down with some non-stick cooking spray, scoop up 1/4 cupfuls of the cookie dough and place them onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet. The cookies DO NOT spread much, so make sure that you pat them down flat on the baking sheet and just leave 1.5 to 2 inch of space in between them. 

Then send them to bake in an oven pre-heated to 175 degrees Celsius (lower by 10 if on fan) for about 10 to 12 minutes. 

As you can see, I was expecting the cookies to spread out quite a bit and flatten into "subway copycats", but it didn't happen. 

One even started puking melted white rabbit candy towards the end of 10 minutes.... But I can't deny that they smelled so good when baking!

These cookies turned out thick, crumbly and cakey. But packs a punch of sweet flavours from the chewy white rabbit candy, oreo biscuits and dark chocolate chunks. 

Not exactly gooey (I baked mine for full 12 minutes, so if you prefer a gooey, underbaked centre, do go for just 10 minutes), but definitely yummy!

Till then,

Mia Foo

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Sending sweet surprises in an hour with Whyzee SG [Sponsored]

 Life's batter with cake, do you agree? 

Whyzee creates cakes that are designed to meet your needs and tastes for a perfect match made in heaven. Be it a Classic New York Cheesecake to satisfy a craving or a customised Ombre Rosette Cake for a special occasion, their cakes not only look good but also taste as good as it looks. Offering a plethora of cake flavours, Whyzee's cake selection goes beyond your usual birthday cakes. Not only offering vegan cakes to cater to all the vegans with a sweet tooth, Whyzee also offers a decent selection of eggless cakes and healthy bakes too! 

Not only that, Whyzee also carries an impressive selection of express cakes to cater for all those last-minute souls who're in a hurry to get their cake delivery within 1 hour, islandwide. Be rest assured that each cake is always freshly baked and they use only the finest ingredients and highest quality in-season fruits for their baked goods!

And the best part about Whyzee is that they not only carries amazingly delicious cakes, but also offers beautifully crafted floral arrangements for flower delivery and other add ons like balloons and plush toys for you to create a bigger, bundle surprises for your loved ones. 

Having a sweet craving out of the blue without any special occasion? No worries, for Whyzee provides mini bites such as brownies, muffins and cupcake delivery as well! 

Anyway, I've had a tough time trying to decide on THE cake to try from their impressive selection of cakes, all looking so fancy and delicious (especially all those chocolate ones!). 

And then, I saw you. Yuzu Osmanthus. 

Yes people, OSMANTHUS. 

Indulge yourself in our signature Yuzu Osmanthus Cake. A refreshing and light option made with Japanese-infused cream in between and around an aromatic sponge cake finally topped with dried Osmanthus flowers. This is one cake you should not miss out on!

Appearance wise, this cake definitely pales in comparison to the rest, but I can't let Ms. Osmanthus go. And I'm so glad I didn't! 

Look at that, the cake was SOOOOOOO soft! Slicing through it with a plastic knife felt like cutting through butter with a hot knife. 

Okay, I know some people really hate seeing/hearing this word. But the cake was really super soft, light and moist at the same time. 

(My apologies if any of you cringed, but what other words would you prefer? WET?) 

I love it that they didn't slap on a thick layer of cream like their lives depended on it, which contributed a lot to the lightness of the cake. I reckon it's also because the sponge cake was already tender and moist enough on its own, hence there's no need for the baker to go crazy with all the cream to balance out any dryness in the sponge layer. Not only was the cream of the perfect thickness, it was also surprisingly light and 'easy to eat', not overly oily and heavy at all. 

The yuzu infused cream in between the sponge layers were the true essence of the cake, adding just the right amount of sweet-sourness that makes you just want to keep eating it.

This cake, is moreish, and I'm not exaggerating. A moreish cake, can you believe it? 

Initially, after slicing out roughly 1/10 of the 9-inch cake, my mum and I decided to just share that 1 slice for supper, mainly because my mum is well known as a "bird's stomach". And guess what, after polishing off her share of the cake (which, effectively is 1/2 of a pretty standard slice of cake, her usual serving size), she actually turned to me and said, "Actually, I think I can eat that slice by myself."

*jaw-dropping moment*

And the fact that my mum's birthday is right around the corner is definitely the icing on the cake. :)

For more information on Whyzee, visit their website or IG

Till then,

Mia Foo

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Mia Eats: East Coast Commune at Marine Cove

-credits to East Coast Commune-

Yes, a new cafe has finally popped up at Marine Cove! 

-credits to East Coast Commune-

Marine Cove at East Coast Park is usually where I end my morning jogs every Sunday (I've ventured on towards Parkland Green just a handful of times), so I actually knew that a new cafe is coming while they're still in the midst of construction. Haha, but I just didn't drop by the very first Sunday they opened. 

Anyhow, I still dropped by the following week (or was it 2 weeks?) after their official opening for a quick breakfast with the HB after my Sunday jog. They're open at 9am and the HB actually reached the cafe at around 840am (he doesn't jog with me) to find himself 3rd in line. And by the time I arrived at somewhere around 850am, there were about 7 groups of patrons waiting in line already. 

Like, WHUTT?

I know, with the current COVID19 situation, it's always better to make a reservation at any eatery you plan to go, regardless of how unpopular they've always been. But here at ECC, they do not accept reservations on weekends, so.... just queue, lor. 

Perhaps due to COVID19, the table arrangement at the spacious cafe is rather spaced out, hence seating capacity may be compromised, which explains the queue 

Iced Latte

The coffee, although not stellar, was still pretty okay. But I'm a little miffed that they do not serve their lattes with a stirrer. I'm all for no plastic straws, but hey I wanna mix my espresso shot with the milk thoroughly before I drink, too! There's also no sugar syrup served alongside my coffee. I typically do not add sugar to my coffee, but it was cheatday and I wouldn't mind to have some sweet coffee once in a while. 

Oh well, perhaps they expect patrons to specifically request for both the stirrer and sugar syrup, or perhaps the HB has declined their offer to serve the coffee with sugar, I can't be sure. 

Fried Chicken & Corn Waffles

You know, I wanted to visit the cafe for their sourdough waffles. But then I got distracted by "Fried Chicken & Waffles" and failed to realise that the fried chicken is served with CORN waffles instead. I can't be sure if the base of the waffle is still sourdough or not, (can hardly taste any distinctive difference) but there's definitely bits of corn kernels tucked away inside the waffle, which was quite unnecessary for me. While both the HB and I love a good waffle that's TOTALLY CRISP on the outside and fluffy on the inside, ECC's corn waffles are soft and moist throughout. Oh well, taste wise it's still pretty good; but texture wise it's not my jam. 

It didn't help that their chef chose to serve the sides of spicy picked daikon directly on top of the waffle, which made that half of the waffle soaked through with the pickled juice and all soggy and semi-disintegrated. 

The fried chicken was also just normal, at best. Nothing fancy with their marinate flavour, nor exceptionally tender and juicy. 

And the verdict is, I will probably still want to revisit, just it's just to try out the sourdough waffles, as I've not seen one anywhere else (yet). But if you're asking if I will return for their coffee and fried chicken & waffles, I guess you should know my answer...

East Coast Commune is located at 1000 ECP, Marine Cove #01-03.

For more information, visit their website

Till then,

Mia Foo

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Mia Bakes: Cottage Cheese Torte (Low Calorie Baked Cheesecake)

 Previously, I've posted a recipe for Ricotta Burnt Cheesecake and was so glad to have found a lower calorie, diet-friendly and yet equally yummy cheesecake. 
And now, I found cottage cheese!

Do you know, 100g of cream cheese packs 342 kcals, while ricotta holds 174 kcal and cottage cheese has barely 100 kcals? And if they're all going to end up tasting equally good, why waste that 3x calories for the same enjoyment, right? 

Goodbye, cream cheese. I won't see you to the door.

Anyway, let's get over with the ingredients, so we can get started!

For a (roughly) 20 x 10 cm loaf pan, you'll need:

For the filling:

200g cottage cheese

2 eggs, separated.

12g plain flour

75g baking sugar replacement

(you can replace with castor sugar in 1:1 ratio)

90g cooking (or heavy) cream

1 tbsp lemon juice

(you may add in grated peel of the whole lemon if you wish)

a pinch of salt

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/8 tsp cream of tartar (optional, for meringue)

For the crust (optional):

70g (or more, if you like a thick crust) biscuit of your choice.

(I've used Britannia Good Day Cashew Cookies, but you can use digestives or even lotus biscuits) 

1 tbsp butter (or more, depending on your biscuit)

recipe adapted from The Farmer's Wife Cookie Cookbook

First up, place all your cookies and 1 tbsp of soften (or melted) butter into a small food processor and process until everything has come together and the consistency resembles wet sand. If the crumbs are unable to hold its shape when pressed together, add a little more butter (or you may replace with lower-fat options like greek yogurt or unsweetened applesauce) until you get to a malleable texture. If you do not have a small food processor, feel free to do this step in a ziplock bag with a rolling pin instead.

Pour the buttered crumbs into your loaf pan, lined with parchment paper and pat it down firmly to form the crust base. Pop it into the oven to bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 5 minutes for the base to somewhat firm up before removing the pan from the oven to cool down slightly while preparing the rest of the ingredients. 

In a large clean bowl, add your separated egg whites and give it a quick whisk with your handheld mixer (or stand mixer, if you have one) to loosen it up. Using a clean spoon (no traces of oil here, as it'll prevent your whites from getting whisked up into meringue), take out a small spoonful (I'll say about half a tablespoonful will suffice) of the whites in a small dish and set everything aside. In another clean bowl, add in your cottage cheese and give it a good beating mixing with your handheld mixer (or balloon whisk, if you're up for spending some elbow grease) until the big curds have more of less broken down into tiny pieces. Then, add in the cream and continue mixing until the mixture has turned considerably smoother. It'll be impossible to beat them into cream cheese consistency, just make sure that there's no more huge lumps of cheese floating around in the mixture and you'll be fine. Then, add in the egg yolks, 1/4 of the sugar, lemon juice (and grated peel), vanilla extract and salt. Whisk until well combined before adding in the flour. Mix until there's no more dry pockets of flour and set the mixture aside. Wash your handheld mixer whisks CLEAN before proceeding. 

Check if your crust base has cooled down before brushing on the 1/2 tbsp of beaten egg whites over the top of the base with a pastry brush lightly. Then, set the pan back into the oven to bake for another 5 minutes (or until you start smelling a nice buttery fragrance from the baked base). Remove from the oven and set aside to cool down. Turn the oven temperature down to 175 degrees Celsius. 

Then, with CLEAN whisk attachments on your handheld mixer, whisk the remaining of your egg whites until frothy before adding in the cream of tartar (optional) and 1/3 of the remaining sugar. Continue whisking and adding rest of the sugar in another 2 additions, whisking thoroughly after each additions. Continue beating the egg whites until stiff peaks formed. 

With a spatula, scoop 1/3 of the meringue and fold it into the cheese-yolk mixture. Then, pour the mixture back into the rest of the meringue and fold lightly (either with a spatula or you can also use a balloon whisk, but mix with a FOLDING technique) until just combined. Do not overmix, or you'll risk deflating your meringue. Pour the fluffy mixture into the loaf pan, over your pre-baked crust and bake at 175 degrees Celsius (reduce by 10 degrees if on fan) for around 25 minutes, or until the top of the torte is evenly browned, and the top springs back slightly when tapped lightly with a finger and the centre jiggles slightly when shaken. If you'll prefer a "fairer" cheesecake (I personally like how the charred/caramelised flavour of the browned top cuts into the otherwise cloying heaviness of a cheesecake) with a sinful creamy mouthfeel, feel free to lower your temperature to 160 degrees Celsius and bake the torte in a hot water bath for much longer (35 to 40 minutes)

After the torte is done, leave it in the oven, door closed, for another 15 minutes before leaving the oven door slightly ajar and allowing the torte to cool down in the oven for at least another 30 minutes. When the torte has cooled down to room temperature (or just slightly warm to touch), cover the top of the torte with clingwrap and pop the entire thing (parchment paper, loaf pan and all) into the fridge for at least 4 to 6 hours before serving. 

The torte will puff up slightly while baking, and the top will shrink back to flatten back out when cooled. But it shouldn't crack, and should stay relatively flat (instead of ending up with a depression in the centre) if you've allowed the torte to cool down slowly in the warm oven. 

I love how the centre of the torte remains slightly molten, yet not alarmingly runny. Due to brushing the top of the pre-baked crust with beaten egg whites, which formed a "waterproof" layer between the moist cheese filling and the baked crust, it allows the crust base to stay crisp instead of turning soggy. The overall texture of the torte, though definitely not fluffy like Japanese cotton cheesecake, is still a lot lighter and fluffier than a typical (cream cheese) baked cheesecake without beating the egg whites separately into meringue. Flavour wise, it's also much lighter (cottage cheese are supposed to be less sweet than cream cheese) and a lot less surfeiting. 

I guess, I've nailed THE recipe to follow for a baked cheesecake for myself!

Till then,

Mia Foo 

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Mia Eats: Kumoya Singapore Themed Pop Up Cafes (Honest Review)

 From Miffy, to Snoopy, Care Bears, Tokidoki, Sesame Streets, We Bare Bears and very recently, Rilakkuma and Gudetama X Bad Badtz Maru. 

The plethora of different themed pop up cafes at Kumoya Singapore, how many have you gone for? 

How many should you go for? 

After having gone for 3 of their different themes (and 4 times, in total), I guess my answer to the question above is probably, ONE. Just once, if you're planning to visit just for the food. Well, at the very least, for my personal experiences with Miffy, We Bare Bears and GudetamaXBad Badtz Maru, I came to realise that they've adopted a 换汤不换药 (changing name without changing content) approach to their menus. 

Anyhow, let's see how the latest Gudetama X Bad Badtz Maru theme at their Jalan Klapa branch looks like! (Previous We Bare Bears and Miffy ones were lost/deleted as they're too long ago...). 

Unlike the other two themes I've visited, this time round they've local-fied the characters, simply by making them "speak" Singlish. 

While I have to say, "sian" is indeed very apt for Gudetama....

Perhaps "mai kancheong" would also be a better fit for Gudetama too? 

I have to say, out of 3 of the 4 times I've visited Kumoya, I've eaten the same dish that has taken on the appearance of a different cartoon character. And that's the steamed bun (mantou) burger with fries and side salad. 

And I have to say, the We Bare Bears and Miffy (not pictured) ones were slightly cuter as they're white and looks so much more squishy and fluffy. 

The taste of the mantou burgers were alright, pretty tasty, to be honest. But effectively, they're all seriously lacking in quality proteins (the meat fillet/patty they give in between the buns were MISERABLE, my palm size at best) and just out to fill you up with cheap carbohydrates (the WBB ones even had yet another smaller, PLAIN steam bun as a side. Can you believe it?!). 

Likewise for J's "breakfast platter" at the Gudetama X Bad Badtz Maru theme, her platter came with TWO thick toasts (rather well toasted, though) along with a tiny dish of scrambled eggs, two strips of rolled up bacon and a small/medium sausage. 

The HB went for pasta for both of my visits with him (WBB & Miffy). There's pasta available on their menu for all 3 themes I've visited, and frankly speaking I won't order them. Well, they're definitely decent plates of pasta, but by now we all should know that Kumoya is charging a "premium" price for the sheer IG-worthy cuteness of their dish plating/decor. But the cuteness and IG-worthiness of their pastas always pales in comparison to the other dishes available on their menu. This is also the reason why I'm always getting their mantou burgers whenever I visit, they're easily the cutest and most IG-worthy mains on their menu. 

And face it, if you're dropping by Kumoya, you're most probably #eatingforinsta, yes? No judgement here. 

And if you're visiting Kumoya, you absolutely MUST get their desserts/fancy drinks because they're always #toocutetoeat <3

This time round, we ordered their chocoball dessert, which is a white chocolate (coloured yellow, duh!) shell with a rojak of sweet treats hidden inside. Brownies, oreo cookies, butter cookies, marshmallows, diced fruits, fruit loops and a generous dollop of whipped cream welcomed us when we broke Gudetama's head with the small mallet that came along with the dessert. This is DEFINITELY meant for sharing, as it is SOOOOO CLOYINGLY SWEET. If only they can dye dark chocolate yellow to introduce some pleasant bitterness to cut into the overall sweetness; or perhaps just do a Bad Badtz Maru version of it to allow for a dark chocolate ball instead. J and I easily took twice as long to finish this 1 dessert together, compared to the time we took to finish our individual mains. Our chit-chatting aside, the surfeiting sweetness of this dessert just makes you need to stop for a rest, for the jerlakness to wear off, before you can get back to it again. 

For both WBB and Miffy, HB and I went for their fancy waffles as our dessert. And I shan't deny that I really loved them! Their waffles, although not exactly the best waffles I've ever eaten, were still crisp on the outside and fluffy in the middle, with a slightly sweetness to it. Likewise, for the chocolate ball, it's still meant for sharing though, looking at the ridiculous amount of sweet treats they pile on top of the waffle. 

So my final verdict, will I go back to Kumoya again? Hmm, who knows?! Maybe they'll launch a Disney collaboration next (hardcore Disney fan here!) and I'll definitely be dropping by again!

But to revisit for the actual food, nope. Why? Because you don't eat the same thing twice when doing it for the gram. 

Till then,

Mia Foo

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