Kue bolu facts for kids
Bolu bruder from Manado
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| Type | Sponge cake, kue |
|---|---|
| Course | Snack, dessert |
| Place of origin | Indonesia |
| Serving temperature | room temperature |
| Main ingredients | Wheat flour, eggs, sugar, butter or margarine, yeast or baking powder |
Kue bolu, often just called Bolu, is a yummy Indonesian word for many different kinds of sponge cakes, tarts, and cupcakes. These cakes can be steamed or baked. Most kue bolu are known for being super soft and fluffy, just like a light sponge cake or a chiffon cake.
Contents
What's in Kue Bolu?
The main things used to make kue bolu are wheat flour, rice flour, sugar, milk, coconut milk, eggs, and butter or margarine. Sometimes, extra flavors like vanilla, chocolate, or pandan are added to make them even tastier.
How Kue Bolu Gets Fluffy
Kue bolu is famous for its soft and airy texture. This happens because of tiny bubbles created by something called a leavening agent. A leavening agent is a special ingredient that makes dough light and soft. Long ago, yeast was often used for this. But today, people usually use baking powder or baking soda to make kue bolu rise and become fluffy.
Bolu vs. Cake
In Indonesia today, the word bolu usually means a simple sponge cake without any frosting. If a cake has frosting on it, it's often called keik. This word comes from the English word "cake".
History of Bolu Cakes
Indonesia was a colony for hundreds of years. This long history changed many things, including its food. European countries like Portugal and the Netherlands brought new ways of baking, making pastries, cakes, and bread to Indonesia.
Where the Name "Bolu" Comes From
The word bolu in Indonesian comes from the Portuguese word bolo. This word means "cake," especially a sponge cake. This shows how much Portugal influenced Indonesia a long time ago.
Dutch Influence on Cakes
Later, when the Dutch took over, the Dutch word taart also became part of Indonesian language. Taart is another type of kue (a traditional snack or cake). So today, the words bolu and tar or tart are sometimes used to mean the same thing.
Different Kinds of Kue Bolu
In Indonesian cooking, bolu cakes are part of a bigger group called kue. This group includes many different traditional snacks, cakes, and sweets. Kue bolu or just bolu is a general name for many types of cakes and tarts in Indonesia. Here are some examples:
- Bolu bahari: These are small bolu cupcakes from Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo).
- Bolu bruder: This means "brother's cake." It's a soft bolu sponge cake from Manado. The word bruder comes from the word for a Christian priest. You might also see it spelled brudel or bluder.
- Bolu emprit: These are tiny, bite-sized bolu cakes from the Javanese cuisine tradition, often found in Yogyakarta.
- Bolu gulung: This is a rolled bolu cake, much like a Swiss roll.
- Bolu klemben: A dry type of bolu from Banyuwangi, East Java. It's shaped like a small football or a cocoa pod. It's quite similar to kue bahulu.
- Bolu kukus: This is a steamed bolu cupcake. It's a very popular jajan pasar (market buy) in traditional Indonesian markets.
- Bolu macan or bolu marmer: These are "tiger stripes" or marbled bolu cakes. They get their pattern from chocolate swirled into the batter.
- Bolu lapis mandarin: This is a square bolu cake with two layers, usually one plain and one chocolate.
- Bolu pandan: This bolu sponge cake is green and flavored with pandan.
- Bolu pisang: A bolu cake flavored with Bananas.
- Bolu tape keju: This bolu cake is made richer with fermented cassava (called tape) and cheese.
- Kue bahulu or Bolu kering: These are small, bite-sized bolu cakes common in Malay areas like the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, and Borneo.
Images for kids
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Bolu pandan
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Bolu gulung
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Bolu bahari
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Bolu emprit
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Bolu mandarin
