Polly's Red Dragon Fruits Birthday Chiffon Cake

 For my mother's 93rd birthday, I thought I will try making the Red Dragon Fruits Chiffon Cake.

My anticipation of a busy weekend schedule was a bit off.  I baked the cake on Thursday.  I can tell the cake is pinky in color.  By Saturday, the beautiful pink crumb seem to have oxidized.  So, next time, I just have to wake up at 4 am, if I need to.

Ingredients are no different from Kabocha Chiffon Cake in previous post, except switch 9 oz Kabocha with 9 oz Puree'd frozen Red Dragon Fruits.

Prepare a full sheet cake  pan - line the bottom with parchment paper and both short ends.  

Double the recipe, if needed - 7 Large Eggs fills one large Angel Food Cake Mold.

 

Red Dragon Fruits Chiffon Cake Ingredients:

1.  7 Large Egg Yolks

2.  60 g Organic Cane Sugar

3.  9 oz Puree'd Frozen Dragon Fruits - Processed in NutriBullet

4.  50 ml Organic Avocado Oil

5.   1/4 tsp Kosher Salt

6.  80 ml Low Fat Lactose Free Milk

7.  160 g Shifted Flour          *NOTE:  No Baking Powder. 

 

7 Large Egg Whites and 110 g Organize Cane Sugar to make Meringue

 

Mix first 6 ingredients in a medium bowl.  

Shift Flour into egg mixture.  Set Aside.

Beat 7 large egg whites - 3 min - low speed 4 - begins to foam, add some sugar tablespoon at a time while egg whites are whisked for 4 min at medium speed 6 - switch to speed 8 - 10 for 8 min. until stiff peak forms.

Add 1/3 C of the meringue into batter.  Whisk in the meringue at the top in circular motion till smooth.  Add another 1/3 C. Mix.  Transfer all batter into meringue bowl.  Fold meringue in till smooth.

Pour into cake mold.  Give several good pounds to release air bubbles from the batter.

Place in gas oven's Center Rack 3rd from the bottom notch.

Because this is baked in a flat sheet pan, it takes a shorter time to bake.  Bake for 33 min.  Check at 25 min with tester.  It's done when the tester comes out clean and beautifully browned.

Decorate anyway you wish.

 

If the batter looks lumpy, put it through strainer.

Then, Add Puree'd Dragon Fruit

I decided to beat with mixer as there are 14 Egg whites to beat. 

What I found out is that I had not been beating the egg whites at high enough speed to completely pick up the egg white that I saw at the bottom of the beater bowl a long time ago which caused me to doubt KitchenAid's beater head and bowl shape, and I have been making meringue by hands all these years to be sure.  Now I have a confidence that if I use speed 8 and 10, all egg whites are picked up and formed into meringue.  I hope it will be the same the next time.

Give several good pounds to release air bubbles in the batter.

Place parchment paper on back side of sheet pan, then, revert the cake out.  Peel the parchment paper off gently.  Cool Completely.  Cover with the sheet pan to keep from drying up.

* The top will sink down, but this is perfect for my purpose to hold cream and fruits.

Make Apricot  Napage - Double 4 oz Apricot Jam/Preserves cooked with 1 to 2 oz water = 8 oz Apricot Jam/Preserves cooked with 2 -3 oz water.  Put through Sieve.  Cool completely.  Brush onto cakes

Slice fresh banana -it should not feel soft, but all yellow. Decorate with Chantilly, fruits, etc.

 

Flan with Condensed Milk

 The last Flan I made contained Lactose Free Low Fat Milk and A2 Whole Milk plus Heavy Cream.  This time I tried with Low fat lactose free milk, Borden's low fat condensed milk.  It turned out quite smooth and tasty.

Preheat oven to 325'F with Baine Marie.

Caramel - 1 Cup Organic cane sugar in a stainless pot over medium heat.  Add 3 Tbsp water.  Do not stir.  Watch it very carefully for the heat to melt sugar.  Do not touch the bubbly foaming sugar.  Watch the color of the sugar - do not let it turn too dark.

Pour immediately into container - Ramekins or cake molds - to coat the bottom and sides.  I used 8" cake mold.    Set aside.

Ingredients for egg mixture:

4 Eggs - hand whisk in a bowl.  Then, add 12 oz low fat condensed milk plus 1/4 tsp salt.  Add 12 oz low fat lactose free milk. Mix well.  Then add 1 - 2 Tbsp Vanilla extract.   Strain the mixture.

Pour into caramel coated cake mold.   Carefully transfer to Baine Marie in the oven.

Bake for 45 min to 50 min.  The inserted tester should be clean.  The Flan is jiggly still.

Remove from oven and let it cool.  Cover with plastic wrap.  Refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.

Loosen the side a bit, then, turn it upside down onto a rimmed platter to serve.

Ready to bake in the oven - baine marie

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes.  The tester should come out clean.

Baked.  Still jiggly when touched.

Cover when cooled before storing in refrigerator.

Loosen the side.  Place a rimmed platter on top and flip the flan over.

Taste - Light and creamy.

If you want a taller slice.  Use a 4  or 6 inch cake mold.

Is the New Nutribullet Combo Worth It?

 I saw the new Nutribullet blender combo on COSTCO's monthly ad, and I wanted to test it out. I already have a NutriBullet 900.  Sometimes, I thought of blending food the normal way by top loading.  Since the new Nutribullet Combo comes with a blender, I thought it could be very useful.

Here is the result.  The blades did not do a good job in mixing ice and food like the normal NutriBullet 900 model.  It also leaked out.  The blender container size is too large.  The Nutribullet combo's blade design is different from the NutriBullet's.   NutriBullet's effectiveness is in the blade design.  The low profile of the bottom blades assure full blending of the items at the bottom of the jar.  The Nutribullet Combo's blades are different and is not effective in cracking ice and mixing the items at the top to the bottom.  

The blender's container size is too large.  The blade is not effective and cannot be removed from the bottom for cleaning.

The blade on the left is NutriBullet 900's.  The blade on the right is Nutribullet Blender Combo's

The blender's blades are different and the new Nutribullet Blender Combo's is not efficient in bringing food from the top to the bottom to be mixed.  The motor runs fast, but it's just seems to spin with no food movement.  

Awkward motor to jar base connector design.  Should have kept them the same way as NutriBullet 900's. 

Juice splattering out and leaking out.  It's likely from overloading it says in the Instruction book, but what is the SEAL doing?

Conclusion - Returning for Refund.