I Love Chocolate!

Hey all,
Every once and a while you feel the need you MUST have chocolate.
I made a Mini Chocolate Fudge cake, with raspberry coulis and a rich chocolate ganache.
Enjoy :)






Ingredients:

• *1/2 cup boiling water
• *1/2 cup cocoa powder
• *3/4 cup caster sugar
• *1/3 cup ground hazelnuts
• *1/3 cup plain flour, sifted
• *80g dark chocolate, melted
• *2 eggs, separated
• Raspberry Coulis:
• *1 cup frozen raspberries
• *1/4 cup caster sugar
• *tbsp lemon juice
• Chocolate Ganache:
• *1/4 cup thickened cream
• *100g dark chocolate, chopped finely 
• *icing sugar, to serve

Method:

1. Preheat the to 180 degrees, line a 6 hole muffin tray with oven muffin cases

2. Combine boiling water and cocoa in a large bowl. Whisk until smooth. Add sugar, hazelnut, flour, chocolate and egg yolks. Stir until combined.

3.Using an electric mixer, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Gently fold egg whites into chocolate mixture.Fill the cases 2/3 full with the mixture.

4.Bake for 15 minutes or until moist crumbs cling to the skewer when inserted 

5.Make the chocolate ganache: Place the cream in a saucepan over low-med heat until just starts to simmer , remove from heat and add the chocolate. Stir until chocolate is melted.

6. Make the raspberry Coulis: Place the raspberries , sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan over med heat, stir until sugar has dissolved then cover and simmer for a further 8 minutes.

7. Unwrap the Chocolate cake and place on a plate, dollop the ganache on top followed by the raspberry coulis.

RSPCA cupcakes 2011

 Hey Guys!,
Monday Last week on the 15th of August was the annual RSPCA Cupcake Day and like last-year i joined in baking cupcakes.
Last years theme was Animal Kingdom (refer to previous blog) and this year i did Paws.
I raised over $300 and made around 400 mini cupcakes, thanks to everyone who bought them!
Time wise it took me a full day to bake them all, and and another day to decorate them.
The flavours i made them in are Chocolate, Caramel and Vanilla.

Elena,
Infinite x's o's

 

Dad's Ford Pannel Van Cake

 Hey all!,
It was my dads birthday a couple of weeks ago and i wanted to make him a cake he would remember for years to come.
Hes had this car ... basically forever so i decided to make it into a cake!.
He caught me sketching his the outline of his car and asked what i was doing, i replied with the completely innocent answer of ".....nothing".

The cake is made out of Chocolate mud, the windows are fondant icing, the wheels are Oreos, the headlights mini m&m's, and the windshield wipers are liquorice.



Elena,
Infinite x's o's

Red velvet cupcakes

I was thinking about it the other day and ... i have never made red velvet cupcakes before! that should be a crime lol anyway here is my first attempt , their quite moist because of the oil instead of butter and nice and fluffy.
Give it a go :)

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups plain flour
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 cups oil
• 1 1/2 cups caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 1 cup milk (or buttermilk preferably)
• 1-2 tsp red food colouring
• 250g pkt cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 cup pure icing sugar
• 120g butter, extra, at room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla essence, extra

Method

1. Preheat oven to 170°C. Line a 12 capacity muffin pan with patty cases. Sift flour and cocoa powder into a bowl.In a separate bowl Whisk oil, sugar, eggs, vanilla and butter in a large bowl until just combined. Stir in flour mixture and milk, Stir in food colouring. 
2. Divide mixture among the lined pans. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centres comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
3. Use an electric beater to beat the cream cheese, icing sugar, extra butter and extra vanilla until smooth. Spread over cupcakes.

Pink Marble Cake

 Hi all!,

Been a while since I've posted, sorry about that.

I looove watching Masterchef on weekday nights. All the unusual flavours you would have never thought to put together , watching the successes and .. of course all the failures.

The other night one of the contestants was battling it out to win immunity with Christine Manfield,  they had to make a Peach blossom marble cake.

It looked so nice i thought i would give it a try, although its not peach blossom it's my version of a pink marble cake, i went a little over-board with the pink colouring so i call it Pink Barbie Cake :)

give it a go.

Ingredients:

185g butter, at room temperature

2/3 cup caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla essence

2 eggs

1 3/4 cups self-raising flour

3/4 cup milk

Pink food colouring

1 egg white, extra, at room temperature

2 cups icing sugar, sifted

3 tsp lemon juice

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C.  Line a 20cm square slice pan with baking paper.Use an electric beater to beat the butter, caster sugar and vanilla until pale and creamy.
2. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add half the flour and half the milk, mix until just combines then add the remaining flour and milk and mix until well combined.
3. Divide the mixture between 2 bowls.Add a few drops of pink food colouring to one bowl.
4. Spoon the white and pink cake mixtures alternately into the pan. Use a skewer to swirl ( don't over swirl or it will turn into one colour) . Bake for 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into centre comes out clean. Set aside for 10 minutes to cool. Turn onto a wire rack to cool completely.
5. Whisk the egg white with an electric mixer until frothy. Stir in the icing sugar. Gradually add lemon juice, stirring until spreadable consistency.
6. spread the 3/4 of the icing over the cake then with the remaining icing add a few more drops of pink colouring. Using a spoon ( or piping bag if you prefer) pipe lines onto the cake , then use a skewer going the opposite way to make the pattern. Serve and enjoy!

Black Forest Cake

This cake was my Mums request for mothers day, there was a minor disaster at first.
 I cut the cake on an angle.. so i couldn't do the three layers that i had originally planned to. It all worked out in the end..
The cake is a simple chocolate cake cut in two brushed with kirsch (cherry liquor). Cherry cream in the centre and dark chocolate ganache around the whole cake topped with grated chocolate, cream and cherries.
Have a good one,
Elena xo

Black Forest Cake:

Ingredients:
* 250g butter
*2 table spoons instant coffee powder
*1 1/2 caster sugar
*1 cup milk
*1/3 cup cocoa
*2 1/2 cups self raising flour
*3 eggs
*200g dark chocolate
*600ml thickened cream
*2 table spoons icing sugar
*1/4 cup kirsch (ps: you can find Kirsch at dan murphy's if coles liquor land doesn't have it)
*2x 425g jar of morello cherries in syrup (drained)
*grated dark chocolate

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 160 degrees, grease and line a 25 cm round cake tin.
2.Place butter, sugar, milk and cocoa(sifted)  in a saucepan over medium heat, cook for about 10 minutes or until smooth. Allow to cool for 20 minutes.
3.whisk flour (sifted) and eggs into chocolate mixture, pour into prepared pan and bake for 50 minutes to an hour.. until skewer comes out clean ,allow to cool in pan.
4.place chocolate and 1/3 cup cream in a saucepan over low-medium heat until smooth. ( do not overheat) put in the fridge for 15 minutes until thickened.
5.use an electric mixer to beat the rest of the cream and icing sugar in a bowl until stiff peaks form. Reserve 1 1/2 cups cherries , halve the rest of the cherries and add to half the cream.
6.cut the cake with a knife through the middle ( make sure its straight!) place the base on a plate and brush with kirsch (top layer too)  Spread the cherry cream over the base then place the top of the cake on. Brush the top and sides with the rest of the kirsch.
7.spread the chocolate over the top and sides of the cake, press grated chocolate onto the sides of the cake. Top with cream and cherries and serve!

Lemon and Lime mini cupcakes

Hey All!!
These mini cupcakes are a coconut lemon base with a lime icing.
I already had some of the pre- made blue vanilla icing for the previous baby shower cupcakes and had some left over.. so i mixed a bit of yellow colouring and lime juice.
vanilla and lemon go quite well together, give it a go! :)

Recipe for Mini lemon cupcakes:

Makes about : 34 mini cupcakes

Ingredients:
*120g butter , softened
*1 cup caster sugar
*2 tablespoons of grated lemon rind
*2 eggs
*1 cup SR flour
*3/4 cup desiccated coconut
*1 cup milk

Method:
1.preheat oven to 180 degrees, (160 fan-forced)
2. Place butter and sugar in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer until creamy. Add lemon rind and eggs, beat well with each one.
Sift flour into bowl, add coconut and milk and stir to combine.
3.spoon mixture into the patty cases and bake for 15-20 minutes
4. allow the cupcakes to cool completely and then ice.