BLESSED WITH GOLD, LUCK AND LAND

7/2/2016
Sunday
CHINESE NEW YEAR EVE 2016

Blueberry pancakes with blueberry syrup 

This  year I took a break from cooking Reunion Dinner.  I was invited by my niece to join her family for the reunion dinner at a restaurant as my sister is still in Melbourne. So there is no need to get up in the wee hours and go to the market in the dark and queue till the daylight break to buy that chicken or meat! 

I took my time to cook some blueberry pancakes and leisurely enjoyed my breakfast with the girls. The blueberry syrup which my sister May bought from USA tasted awesome with the pancakes! Thanks May. 

So I decided to bake instead.  I  called this the Auspicious Blessing Cake as I intended to bring it along to my brother's house for the 1st day of CNY.

See the colourful layers:
Blessed with Gold: Vanilla bean paste layer
May Luck always be with you: red layer- batter mixed with cranberry sauce/jam
Least but not last to acquire land(house): Chocolate (earth-colour) layer.
Recipe from the blog: dailydelicious.

Butter and sugar beaten together till light and then flour is added and mix till combine. Then only the eggs are added into the batter.  According to her post.."the flour will be covered with fats before contacting the water from the eggs and that means the gluten won't occur easily and you will get soft and fine texture cake."  

the batter is then divided into 3 parts: cocoa powder;  jam (I used the remaining cranberry sauce) and vanilla and mascarpone cheese (since I did not have any, I replaced with sour cream).  

 

Filled them into individual piping bags... this merely facilitate easy layering

I have decided to use my jelly mould instead of a loaf tin.

Bake them at 180C till golden brown and cooked through.   This indeed was a soft and fine texture cake. 

Before the Chinese New Year Eve,  my cat,  Bibi had hurt herself (most probably fighting outside).  We had decided to remove the cone of shame the next day as she was not used to it and was walking backwards! 

Bibi showing off her wounded leg.  

Both of them occupied the sofa!

Waiting the restaurant for to open its door for the 2nd session of dining..

We were booked for the 2nd session @ 8pm, so there was time for them to clear the dining hall after the first dining at 5pm. 

"Huat-Ah"...

complimentary bottle of red wine for each table. 

Meanwhile over in my brother's house, the Chan Clan getting ready for the countdown ...

to a yummy homecooked Reunion Dinner.....

And Down Under, its a steamboat lunch at May's house with the rest of the Chan Clan... 

  

Blessing for everyone for the new year from Melbourne.