Egg White Beating tips

Finally being able to get my whites up and standing… doing me very proud, i share with you some learning point when it comes to egg whites

1) Make sure that your beating bowl is CLEAN. No oil, no water, nothing.

2) Your whites: keep it at room temperature first and white seperating them, take note that there is no hint of yolk

3) Add salt/lemon/cream of tar tar to help you. You can start with a pinch of salt in the whites, which helps to firm up the proteins. About a quarter-way through the beating process, you add an tartar or lemon juice to the foam, which stabilizes it and helps keep the bubbles from bursting when you stop beating. (1/8 teaspoon od tartar per egg yolk, or 2 drops of lemon/vinegar) – The quantity is important.

4) Make sure that you use a good egg beater, the beater should be close to the bottom of the bowl, about 0.5 cm and circulating to reach all of the whites.

5) A Good tip on the timing:

“…the best way to beat egg whites is with a serious stand mixer.

Next, is to add the salt and up to four whites to the bowl and beat for one minute at medium low speed. Add the acid, then beat for three minutes at high speed.

If you need to add the sugar at the end, do so and beat for an additional 15 seconds at high speed. If you’re beating five eggs or more, the first stage should take two minutes, and the second should take three to four at a slower setting (medium/medium-high).

If you’re using a hand mixer, beat the whites and salt for two minutes at medium speed, add the acid and beat for two minutes more at high speed. If you add sugar at the end, beat for 30 seconds.”

Finally: PATIENCE.

Try it out with my Pandan Chiffon Recipe!

Pandan Chiffon Cake – Making it right, finally

I really hated making this recipe. Regardless of how much i like to eat chiffon cakes, i seem to have no affinity to baking – or at least the first 4 times…. I fail x4 for this recipe before getting it right.. Feeling more guilty with the increase in food prices.

Finally yesterday, i got it up! YES! This time the egg whites were nice and stiff! woohoo~ and while folding the whites in, i was extremely gentle. So for you guys who had trouble with egg white… it is not impossible!

I know, it looks like a pound cake… quoting my sister, but given that i finally got the texture right, i deserve some encouragement.

The problem with how it look:

1) the pan was too big! Ha~ so it turn out a bit flat. I only had that tin. Now i know betta!

2) I think it was either i the oven too long or the oven was too hot. The problem is, if you put it in the oven for too short a time, the chiffon will not come out and sinks. If the oven is not hot enough, the chiffon won’t rise… No you know why i said chiffons are difficult.

Taste and texture wise:

1) Sweetness was just nice, not too bland or sweet

2) The pandan smell was Va va voomingly good. -> Use pandan paste to colour and pandan juice for more flavor

3) However, it was slightly too dry, either due to the heat or because i reduced the oil content… haha~

All in all, i give myself 7.8/10! *applause*

Find The Recipe Here:

PANDAN CHIFFON CAKE (modified from Prima Flour Website)

Ingredients:

100 g Cake Flour
1 tsp Baking Powder

100 ml Coconut Milk
1 tbsp Pandan Juice
(cut and bruise pandan leaves, add 2 tbsp of water, bring to boil – reduce to 1 table spoon)

4 Egg Yolks
50 ml Canola/Olive Oil (hee, i skimped to about 35…)
¼ tsp Pandan Paste
Pinch of Salt

5 Egg Whites
¼ tsp Cream of Tartar
100 g Castor Sugar

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 170°

Extract pandan juice and add to coconut milk.

Add egg yolk, 50 g sugar, oil, colouring and pandan paste to the coconut mixture. Mix well using hand whisk.

Sift cake flour and baking powder and fold into mixture. Mix until smooth. Set aside.

Beat egg whites and tartar at high speed until formy. Add remaining 50 g sugar and
beat until stiff.

Add 1/3 beaten egg white to the yolk mixture and mix using a hand whisk.

Slowly fold in this mixture to the remaining 2/3 of beaten egg whites.

Pour mixture into an ungreased 18cm chiffon tin and bake for about 50mins.

Most important step: Turn tin over on a cake rack to cool before loosening cake. – Patience is a virtue here.

Use a thin and narrow knife to loosen the sides stuck to the pan. Remove the pandan cake slowly and it is ready to serve!

Bon Appetit!