New Normal, New Passion with Easy Recipes

The pandemic has brought out the baker in a lot of people. These days, online bakeshops are sprouting left and right. Baking is another activity that has received so much love lately as a result of the pandemic. For some, they’ve even turned it into a thriving business. 

Contrary to what others think, making baked goods is as easy as it gets since you only need to follow the right measurements and, of course, use the right ingredients. And unlike other hobbies, you can always easily share your goodies with your family and the special people in your life.  

If you’ve been thinking of giving baking a try but do not know where to start, then you’ve read the right piece. Here's an easy recipe you can practice without breaking a sweat.  

Fluffy Yellow Cake

Ingredients: 

For the cake:  

2 ½ cups of Joy of Baking Cake Flour 

1 ¼ tsp of baking powder 

¼ tsp of baking soda 

¾ tsp salt 

1 ¾ cup of granulated sugar 

1 cup of buttermilk 

10 tbsp of unsalted butter 

3 tbsp of vegetable oil 

2 tsp of vanilla extract 

3 large eggs 

3 large egg yolks 

A pinch of cream tartar 

For the frosting:  

20 tbsp of unsalted butter 

1 cup confectioner’s sugar 

¾ cup of dutch-processed cocoa 

¾ cup of light corn syrup 

1 tsp of vanilla extract 

8 oz of milk, bittersweet or semisweet chocolate 

INSTRUCTIONS: 

FOR THE CAKE: Adjust oven rack to middle. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.   

Grease two (2) 9-inch round pans, then line with parchment paper and grease the parchment paper. Flour the pans right after. 

In a mixing bowl, whisk in Joy of Baking Cake Flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and 1 1/2 cup sugar together in a large bowl. Then in a medium bowl, whisk together, oil, vanilla, and egg yolks. 

Using a stand mixer fitted with the whisk on medium-low speed, whip in egg whites and cream tartar for about 1 minute. Then, increase speed to medium-high and whip whites to soft billowy mounds for about another minute. Gradually add remaining 1/4 cup sugar and whip until glossy, stiff peaks around 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and set aside. 

In a separate mixer bowl, add flour mixture. 

Using a rubber spatula, stir one-third of whites into the batter, then add the remaining two-thirds of whites and gently fold into batter until no white streaks remain. Divide batter evenly between prepared pans, smooth tops with a rubber spatula, and gently tap pans on the counter to release air bubbles. 

Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean 20 to 22 minutes, rotating pans halfway through baking. Let cakes cool in pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove cakes from pans, discard parchment, and let cool completely, about 2 hours, before frosting. (Cakes can be wrapped tightly with plastic wrap and kept at room temperature for up to 1 day. Wrapped tightly in plastic, then aluminum foil. Cakes can be frozen for up to 1 month. Defrost cakes at room temperature before unwrapping and frosting.) 

1. FOR THE FROSTING: Process butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a food processor until smooth, about 30 seconds, scraping down the bowl as needed. Add corn syrup and vanilla and process until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds. Scrape down the bowl, then add chocolate and process until smooth and creamy, 10 to 15 seconds (Frosting can be kept at room temperature for up to 3 hours before frosting cake or refrigerated for up to 3 days. If refrigerated, let stand at room temperature for 1 hour before using.) 

2. Line edges of the cake platter with 4 strips of parchment paper to keep the platter clean. Place 1 cake layer on the prepared platter. Place about 1 ½ cups of frosting in the center of the cake layer right to the edge of the cake. Place the second cake layer on top, making sure layers are aligned, then frost top in the same manner as the first layer, this time spreading frosting until slightly over the edge. Gather more frosting on top of a spatula and gently spread icing onto the side of the cake. Smooth frosting by gently running the edge of spatula around cake and leveling ridge that forms around the top edge or create billows by pressing back of a spoon into the frosting and twirling spoon as you lift away. Carefully pull-out pieces of parchment from beneath the cake before serving. (Assembled cake can be refrigerated for up to 1 day. Bring to room temperature before serving.

You can easily make these recipes with Joy of Baking’s Cake and Bread Flour. A brand under the Agri Pacific Corporation, which is under the Rebisco Group of Companies, Joy of Baking has been one of the leaders in the market since 2015 thanks to its use of Swiss and German milling technology to produce products that can make baking easier and tastier for its consumers.  

The Bread Flour is ideal for warm treats and other bread-type products like loaves and buns while the Cake Flour is perfect for creating moist batter-type cakes. Other products of Joy of Baking include the All-Purpose Flour which can be used for banana bread and chocolate chip cookies and the Complete Breadmix which can be used for pandesal, Spanish bread, and ensaymada because of its all-in-one formula and a free pack of yeast.  

Joy of Baking products is widely available from its many resellers, Lazada https://bit.ly/3g0JxIF, and Shopee https://bit.ly/3qkOb8Z. Everyone can also check out their official Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/JoyofBakingPH for more information.  

Time to go out of your comfort zone and start a new passion! Bake a treat or two now to make up for the joy and fun you have been used to doing before. At the end of the day, it is about making the most out of what we currently have that is the most important of all.