Mochaccino Cupcake

MOCHACCINO CUPCAKE

Here's a fun coffee inspired treat that's literally a cupcake!  It's inspired by this recipe earlier posted in my Sweet Tidings blog. The chocolate mudcake recipe is taken from The Cook Book. Enjoy!



Chocolate Mud Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 and 3/4 cups  cake flour
• 3/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup vegetable il
• 1 cup sour milk (1 cup whole milk with 1 tsp white vinegar added) or buttermilk
• 1 cup coffee (long black strength)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract 

Directions:

 1. Sift flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl and stir to combine. Add eggs, coffee, milk oil and vanilla and beat for 2 minutes with a hand mixer until well combined.

2. Pour into baking cups in  a muffin pan and bake in a 180 C  (350 F) oven for approximately 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes.

Whipped Cream Topping 

• 1 and 1/3 cup whipped cream
• Chocolate syrup (optional)
• Cocoa powder  

How to assemble:

When muffins have cooled, remove mud cake from baking cups and transfer to  teacups/coffee cups. Decorate with chilled whipped cream and garnish with sifted cocoa powder or chocolate syrup.

When Life Gives you Lemons, Make Lemon Poppy Seed Loaves

I love the delicious lemony tartness of this simple lemon poppy seed loaf recipe taken from the cookbook Loaves, Cakes and Quiches with Friends by Ilona . It pairs wonderfully with your favorite tea!

Lemon Poppy Seed Loaf

2 unwaxed lemon
3 eggs
170 g (6oz) caser sugar
150 g (5 oz) unslated butter, melted
3 teaspoons baking powder
pinch of bicarbinate of soda
1 tablespoon poppy seeds

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a loaf tin and slightly dust with flour.

2. Wash the lemons. Grate the zest if 1 lemon and squeeze the juice from both. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar until thick and frothy. Gradually incorporate the flour and melted butter. With a spaula, fold in the baking powder,bicarbonate of soda, lemon juice and poppy seeds. Fold just until well blended.

Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for about 50 minutes, until the tip of a knife inserted in the centre of the comes out clean. Allow to cool in the tin before turning out.

First day of Christmas: Chocolate cake-a-melting

Individual Chocolate Melting Cakes

Ingredients:

10 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup
1 1/2 tsps baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
Caramel sauce
Coffee ice cream

Directions:

Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly coat a 12-muffin tin with vegetable cooking spray.

Melt the chocolate and butter in a large bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Remove from heat. In another large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar at medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Add the flour, baking powder, salt, and melted chocolate. Mix with a spoon until well blended.

Divide the batter evenly into 8 muffin tins and bake until the cakes have just cooked through about 15 minutes. The cakes will still look a bit moist on top. Remove from the oven and let cool 5 minutes. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream with caramel sauce on top.

Caramel Sauce

Sugar 8 oz
Water 2 oz
Lemon juice 3/4 tsp
Heavy cream 6 oz
Milk 4 oz

1. Combine sugar, water and lemon juice in heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Cook the syrup to caramel stage.

2. Remove from heat and cool 5 minutes.

3. Bring heavy cream to a boil.

4. Stir and continue to add the cream slowly. return to heat.

5. Let cool completely.

6. Stir the milk into cooled caramel.

A taste of vintage Christmas

I've always loved the extraordinary illustrations of America's living national treasure Tasha Tudor. Her artworks have graced children's books as well as numerous well-loved vintage cookbooks. One of those rare cookbooks that gives us a glimpse of New England kitchen life is Mary Mason Campbell's rare and charming book Butt'ry Shelf Cookbook: Receipts for Very Special Occasions. A butt'ry is a New England cottage pantry, the hub of cooking and baking and where all good things abound. In this book, Mary delights us with her prose as well as with time honoured family recipes passed from generation to generation. Anecdotes about New England country life and Tasha's delightful illustrations sprinkle each page, like nutmeg on apple pie.

One of the delightful recipes featured is this old fashioned Gingerbread recipe that has won many country fair awards. As a Christmas treat or tea party staple, this gingerbread is just perfect. Not too sweet and overwhelming, it comes out moist yet richly dense. The aroma of ginger, cinnamon and cloves brings in a heady rush of good for the soul kitchen aromatherapy. Serve a slice of this lovely gingerbread with either sweetened whipped cream, white frosting or maple cream.

Gingerbread

½ cup sugar
½ cup butter
1 egg beaten
1 cup molasses
1 cup hot water
1 ½ cups raisins
2 ½ cups sifted flour
1 ½ tsp soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
½ tsp powdered cloves
½ tsp salt

Cream butter and sugar together, add beaten egg and the molasses. Then add dry ingredients sifted together. Add hot water and beat until smooth. Fold in the raisins. Bake in a well buttered gem pans or in a loaf or cake pan. Bake in a medium oven 350 until tests done with a toothpick.
 

Maple Cream
 

1 cup heavy sour cream

1/4 cup maple syrup with a pinch of salt

Grated nutmeg

Simply chocolate

I'm not really a cupcake person but once in a while I like to indulge my chocolate cake cravings with these petite versions of Hershey's Perfectly Chocolate Chocolate Cake. I think silky ganache (with an innocent tinge of Bourbon) makes the perfect frosting for this incredibly lush and moist chocolate cupcake.

I like my cupcakes simple. Just pure, naked, tongue curling chocolate with no nuts or candy sprinkles. Just a dusting of snowy confectioners' sugar or cocoa and or maybe a pinch of chili powder to suit the mood I'm in.