King of Fruits

Sunday, July 18th, 2010

Mmmm...Durians..by just looking at the picture one can almost smell and taste the sweet velvety flesh of the most wonderful fruit on earth!

It's been awhile since my last update. Sorry guys, for making you wait. After weeks of busy schedule and couple with laziness, finally I'm back. This time, this is dedicated to all the Durian lovers out there!

At each durian season, there's always an intention to try in baking durian cake but it never happen..finally I did it! The texture is very soft and moist. Similar to suji cake but with the extra oommph of durian flesh. My family love it and I don't mind baking it again.

My personal preference has always been the 'kampung durian' as it has its own distinctive flavour and aroma and not too 'rich' in taste. I love to have a variety of durians including the so called 'branded' ones as well like the D24, D2, XO, 'mao sang' etc but none of it beats the kampung version.

For the benefit of those who are not so 'into' durians or wonder what is durian, you may find the information below which I googled up and hopefully after reading this, you will get 'hooked' to the King of Fruits just like I do.

The durian (pronounced /du-ri-en) is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio and the Malvaceae family (although some taxonomists place Durio in a distinct family, Durionaceae). Widely known and revered in southeast Asia as the "king of fruits", the durian is distinctive for its large size, unique odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk. The fruit can grow as large as 30 centimetres (12 in) long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and it typically weighs one to three kilograms (2 to 7 lb). Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale yellow to red, depending on the species.

The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour, strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Some people regard the durian as fragrant; others find the aroma overpowering and offensive. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust. The odour has led to the fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in southeast Asia.

The durian, native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia, has been known to the Western world for about 600 years. The 19th-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace famously described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds". The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked.

There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market: other species are sold in their local regions. There are hundreds of durian cultivars; many consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

Ever wonder how the flower looks like, well, here it is..

And now, here's the Durian Cake that I baked yesterday and the recipe as well..I hope you will try this recipe since it's after all, the Durian season and to make my effort in posting this worth its while! Kaakaakakaa...are you drooling already?? huh! huh?



Durian Butter Cake

Ingredients:
200g margarine }
50g butter } (I used 250g butter instead of mix it with margarine)
220g castor sugar (I reduced the sugar as the durian flesh is already quite sweet)
4 eggs
250g durian flesh (can add more)
1/4tsp durian essence (never like artificial essence, so I omit this)
230g self-raising flour
20g coconut powder (not sure what this is so I omit this as well)
1/8tsp baking powder
1/4tsp bicarbonate of soda

1. Grease mould and preheat oven to 170C
2. Beat margarine, butter and sugar till light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition.
3. Stir in durian flesh and essence. Fold in sifted flour, coconut powder, baking powder and soda. Mix until well blended.
4. Spoon batter into prepared mould and bake for 45 mins or until cake is done.


Thanks for visiting my blog..till the next time!