Kuih Bahulu Recipe

August 29, 2008

Time flies, August is almost over.

August 31st marks the 51st Independence Day of Malaysia and September 1st is the beginning of Ramadan--the holy month of Islam. To celebrate the two important events in Malaysia, I thought I would introduce you to Kuih Bahulu, a traditional Malaysian kuih (or cake).

A favorite among many Malaysians of all races and ages, kuih bahulu is usually baked during the festive seasons such as Hari Raya and Chinese New Year. These sweet and eggy kuih go very well with coffee, and are always a crowd-pleaser during the festive seasons. A few kuih bahulu and a cup of coffee is a surefire way to greet your guests...

Kuih bahulu comes in different shapes, but the popular ones are the button and goldfish (pictured below). The kuih bahulu molds also come in different sizes--big and small. I used the small button and gold fish molds for my kuih bahulu because I simply adore cutesy size. (The kuih bahulu molds are available for sale on Rasa Malaysia.)

As the sweet aroma filled the air in my current home in California, a flood of fond memories were racing through my mind. I personally recall many kuih bahulu making and baking sessions with my late grandmother, my late mother, and my aunt. As we were busy baking the kuih bahulu, our anticipation of Chinese New Year and the warm thoughts of our family reunion brought much joy into our home kitchen. Making kuih bahulu has always been fun to me.

While French madeleines are hugely popular, I have to say that Malaysian Kuih Bahulu is no less than the madeleines. I personally think that kuih bahulu is our answer to madeleines, with a slightly different recipe but very similar methods. If you are interested in trying out my recipe of kuih bahulu and would like to purchase the mold, drop me an email. I hope you get to learn--and appreciate--the beauty of Malaysian kuih (cakes).

For my Malaysian readers, I wanted to wish you all "Selamat Hari Merdeka" and for my Muslim readers, Happy Ramadan!

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Other Malaysian food art and recipes:

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Recipe: Kuih Bahulu

Ingredients:

3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 1/4 cup flour (sifted)
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 tablespoons cooking oil/butter (optional)

Method:

Beat the eggs with an electric hand-mixer until frothy and then add sugar. Continue to beat until the sugar is well dissolved and the mixture becomes sticky.

Add in the vanilla essence and fold in the flour gradually and then add in the cooking oil/butter. Continue to beat the batter with the hand-mixer until well-blended. Grease the kuih bahulu moulds and fill up to the surface level.

Bake in preheated oven at 375 degree Fahrenheit for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove bahulu from the moulds and cool on wire racks. Dust with powdered sugar, if desired.

Cook's Note:

The traditional kuih bahulu recipe doesn't call for cooking oil or butter, but I find them a tad too dry. Adding the cooking oil/butter makes the kuih bahulu comes off the mould easily. Also, as you can see, my kuih bahulu are over baked because I lost track of time. They should be light brown in color.

Labels: Baking, Malaysian Food, Malaysian Food Guides, Malaysian Food Recipes