tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15346573692227699282024-03-13T04:28:32.468-07:00Cookies and Cakes and all things baked!Baking: winning the war of waistlines and willpowercupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.comBlogger84125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-850706549873829262014-05-07T12:42:00.001-07:002014-05-07T12:42:41.849-07:00Selfie cake, Castle cake, super pink cakes and lots of cupcakes Hey!last week was a super busy week for baking it seems like everyone has a birthday in the same week sometimes as I go from having about one cake a week to do to having about 4 to 5 in the odd week as well as going to work too. So at the moment I'm a little tired and having a little break from baking (well three days).<br />
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I thought I'd take this time to show you some recent cakes I have made and decorated so here goes :<br />
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First of all I was asked to make a cake for a friends niece who loves One Direction, Mac makeup and taking selfies. My friend made some pictures of her, and one of Harry Styles look like Polaroids on the computer and we ordered these to be printed Polaroid size on icing sheets, they came out really well. I also made some makeup out of fondant, and even dusted the fondant make up brush with edible shimmer powder. Lastly I piped on music notes and One Direction lyrics.<br />
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Next up is another super pink girly cake, this one with a quilted effect, diamante studs and edible pearls:<br />
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Lastly in the super pink cake collection was a cake for a friends recent 30th Birthday. My friend really wants to be a princess so here is her cake:<br />
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I think the detail such as the edging round the doors really made this cake!<br />
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I have also still be getting lots of orders for cupcakes and have enjoyed making some look super summery now the weather is getting better, such as these with little home made fondant bees.<br />
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Lastly for today I also recently made some engagement cupcakes:<br />
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Any way that will do for today although I still have a whole file worth of things to add and also to tell you about my new favourite cake to make and eat all to myself. I'll be back with that soon though<br />
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Cupcake Kris xxxcupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-41106013778922506302014-03-24T15:08:00.002-07:002014-03-24T15:08:44.645-07:00Breaking Bad Cake, Mountain Cake and cupcake tower for a wedding. Wow I don't think I have gone this long without blogging before and I am also beginning to sound like a broken record in my blogs with each one mentioning how I haven't blogged in a while. But that doesn't mean I haven't been baking. Since my last blog there have been weddings, birthdays and a holiday to Prague as well as now and again, in between novelty cakes, having time to bake for myself.<br />
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So here are just a few of the things I have baked and decorated lately:<br />
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I made a breaking bad cake for my fiance, he loves the show and it was the perfect birthday cake complete with 'fake blue crystal meth' made by boiling down clear boiled sweets with a little food colour then pouring onto a tray lined with grease proof paper and then smashing up when hardened. </div>
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Now, Neil's birthday is also just a day before one of my best friends so I also had her cake to make on the same day. She loves hiking and also taking pictures so I made her a mountain cake complete with lake and mini camera. Here it is:<br />
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I really don't know why I haven't got better quality pictures of these on my computer. Any way this cake was huge the board itself is a super wide board and for the peak of the mountain I used the top half of my giant cupcake mould then carved into a round cake at the bottom with butter cream between layers at intervals.<br />
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In the same week as that I also made a cupcake tower for a wedding with a giant cupcake on top. There was a bit of drama surrounding this cake involving me injuring my hand just before icing, however a lot of pain killers and help from my friend Mandie helped me finish. Anyway here it is:<br />
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Another bad quality picture sorry haha.<br />
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Any way that's it for today, there are still a few cakes I have made recently, Including 3 very pink ones that I will update with soon. Until then, bye for now<br />
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Cupcake Kris xxxx<br />
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<br />cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-19266424471875635492013-10-27T05:03:00.000-07:002013-10-27T05:03:07.515-07:00Harley Quinn CakeSo I must apologize, I have abandoned my blog again but life has been very busy. I had my Birthday, which my friends made an amazing cake for me for and I also went on holday to Florida, It's going to be boyfriends 30th this year and he wanted a big holiday instead of a party, It was amazing.<br />
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This time of year is also definitely my busiest for celebration cakes, there's are so many friends birthdays and I also have a wedding to bake for on Friday, also on top of all the busyness whilst in Florida this happened.<br />
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So now I have a wedding to plan too. exciting times :), I also got a new job which I am waiting to start so everything has been all go at once. <br />
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Any way as I unfortunately don't have time to post a recipe today , and can't actually remember the last new thing I baked as things have been so hectic. I will just show you a birthday cake I made for a party last night.<br />
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The cake was for my friend Jen who loves Batman and especially Harley Quinn , here it is:<br />
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She loved it which id great and it went perfectly with her super hero and villain fancy dress party.<br />
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I have 3 more birthday cakes and a wedding cake to make in the next week... that's a whole lot of icing sugar. But after that is the lead up to Christmas which means lots of lovely baking and mince pies. mmmm<br />
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Any way that's it for today , Ill be back soon with more celebration cakes and the beginning of Christmas baking.<br />
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Cupcake Kris<br />
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xxx<br />
<br />cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-28654051331792549082013-07-15T14:26:00.000-07:002013-07-15T14:29:53.648-07:00Lemon, Coconut and Raspberry Loaf. I've recently been planting lots of lovely flowers in my garden and it's starting to look so pretty but one thing I've kind of abandoned this year is my vegetable patch. This was due to the fact that in late spring/ early summer we had such bad weather that i didn't bother planting any seedlings for fear they wouldn't survive.<br />
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Usually I'd cut the raspberry bush right back and plant a few vegetables but because this year I haven't got anything else except herbs growing I let the raspberry bush just take over. Now after a few weeks of sun I find myself with loads of raspberry's, more than I know what to do with. When that happens I quickly start scanning my cookbooks for all recipes involving raspberry's.<br />
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Any way all this reminded me of a cake I baked a while back. The cake itself started as a coconut lemon loaf however I found myself with raspberry's and thought that the flavour would suit perfectly as an addition. I really like raspberry and chocolate together but the pairing of raspberry and lemon I find so refreshing and perfect and the coconut just gives it an extra bit of flavour. </div>
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Here it is : </div>
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I had a slight issue with my raspberry's sinking to the bottom of the cake, however this really didn't take away from the flavour and tossing them in some flour before adding may prevent this. </div>
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and here's how it's made: </div>
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<u>Lemon , Coconut and Raspberry loaf : </u></div>
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for the cake: </div>
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120g Butter </div>
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200g Caster Sugar</div>
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2 tbsps Fresh Lemon Juice </div>
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2 Eggs </div>
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200g Self raising Flour.</div>
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Pinch of Salt </div>
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120ml Semi skimmed milk</div>
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4 tbsps Desiccated Coconut </div>
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1- 2 tsps grated Lemon Peel</div>
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a couple of handfuls of fresh Raspberry's </div>
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For the lemon icing: </div>
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3 Tbsps Icing Sugar </div>
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2 - 3 Tbsps Lemon Juice </div>
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Extra Desiccated Coconut for sprinkling. </div>
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Pre heat the oven to 180 Deg C. Grease and line the bottom of a loaf tin. </div>
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Cream the butter and sugar together until combined, beat in the lemon juice. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.</div>
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Sieve the flour and salt and add this to the butter mixture alternately with the milk. stir in the desiccated coconut and lemon peel.</div>
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Toss the raspberry's in a little flour and gently stir these into the mixture. </div>
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Pour into the loaf tin and bake for about 60 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool slightly in the tin for around 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. </div>
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For the topping, stir the lemon juice into the icing sugar to make a runny (but not too runny ) icing to brush </div>
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over the cake. Sprinkle more coconut over the top, then let the icing harden before slicing to serve. </div>
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And that's it! </div>
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I'm off to find more ingredients with raspberry's before they take over my kitchen.</div>
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Cupcake Kris xxx</div>
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cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-68528044416205919932013-07-01T14:00:00.001-07:002013-07-01T14:01:51.528-07:00Fathers day, Baby shower cupcakes, giant cupcake wedding and a very rude hen night cake. As ever I have been busy baking away for orders, there have been lots of events recently and even though in between I have had time to bake a few things for myself (almond and white chocolate biscotti and tea cake to name a couple) I haven't had the time to upload any of the recipes, but I promise I will blog one of those recipes this week .<br />
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In the mean time I thought I'd show you some orders I've had recently.<br />
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First I had an order for a wedding at the beginning of June that was for 100 Cupcakes and one giant cupcake. This would be the first giant cupcake I made so I had a practice a few weeks before to get the quantities and timings right but I was very pleased with the end result, here it is.<br />
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I was made up with the mould once I'd ironed out a few kinks and quantity stresses. I usually do not like working with silicone moulds, however I think me and silicone have put our differences aside now I can finally confidently produce a cake that comes out cleanly and cooks evenly (after google helped.) Any way the mould was a bargain, reduced to just £1 at a local discount store.<br />
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I covered the bottom of the cake in roll out fondant and then iced the top with rose swirls, then filling in any gaps.<br />
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Then there was fathers day, my orders for this were much more straight forward:<br />
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I had to borrow this photo, as I forgot to take one of the cakes set up.<br />
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I also had an order for some baby shower cupcakes in both pink and blue:<br />
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For these I made little sugar paste feet, bibs, bottles and Baby signs. I really like the feet and they're super easy to make too.<br />
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And lastly I had a very interesting order for a hen night, I actually watched a tutorial of how to shape this cake in the break room in work and got some interesting looks from nosey people trying to see what I was watching. Any way, any children look away now:<br />
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I'm not sure I'd be thrilled on receiving such a cake however the hen party were glad and it was exactly what they wanted. The "hair" is piped with a multi holed nozzle for that real look. It was definitely one of the most interesting orders I've had and everyone I told about it actually couldn't wait to see the finished errr......piece<br />
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Any way on that note I think I'll leave it at that and update with new recipes later in the week<br />
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until then, bye for now<br />
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Cupcake Kris<br />
xxx<br />
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<br />cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-46192222581433408522013-05-13T13:33:00.002-07:002013-05-13T13:34:16.697-07:00Dark Chocolate and Amaretto CakeSo, I have an ever growing list of cakes I've baked recently, not for orders but just for fun that I plan to post on the blog along with the recipe and what I thought of the bake. Some of these cakes I made quite a while ago, some recently however sometimes these get pushed to the back of the list for even more recent cakes I've made, this is the case today.<br />
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The reason for this is I got a new cake book and after a brief browse and 1 bake I can already tell that it's going to be a firm favorite. The book people came to my work last week and even though I had made a promise to myself not to purchase any more cookery books I couldn't help myself and came away with a copy of The Clandestine Cake Club Cookbook. The recipes in the book are from different members in all the different factions of the club all over the UK and some abroad. and after reading about the club it sounds so much fun and a really great concept. I mean any club based on cake is a great concept right?<br />
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I'm so glad I broke my own promise to myself though as it is a beautiful book filled with inspiring recipes and I think I want to bake them all. Boyfriend and one of my best friends have already had a look through and picked about 7 or 8 cakes between them for me to bake next haha.<br />
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There were so many cakes in the book I wanted to bake first however my choice was based on the fact I had a big bag of Amaretti biscuits that needed using as well as most of the other ingredients required so I decided on the Dark chocolate and Amaretto cake which was a recipe from Carmella Hayes, part of the Northampton and district CCC. The recipe itself was really well written and the cake came out perfect and full of flavour. Here it is :<br />
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I apologise for the terrible photo, I was a tad rushed as boyfriend really wanted a piece before it had even finished cooling.<br />
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<b><u>Dark Chocolate and Amaretto Cake:</u></b><br />
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This cake is best mixed by hand to retain the best texture.<br />
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4 large eggs<br />
50 g Caster Sugar<br />
200g Self raising flour<br />
100g Ground Almonds<br />
1 Sachet of pane degli angeli ( An Italian vanilla flavored raising agent) or 1tsp baking powder with 2tsp Vanilla extract.<br />
200g Butter, Melted<br />
200g Good quality dark chocolate, chopped<br />
200g Amaretti Biscuits crushed <br />
2 tbsp Amaretto liqueur<br />
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Pre heat the oven to 180 deg C and grease and line a 23cm round cake tin.<br />
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In a large bowl beat the eggs and sugar using a wooden spoon. Add the flour, almonds, baking powder and vanilla (or Pane degli angeli) and melted butter and mix well. Stir in the chocolate, Ammaretti biscuits and Amaretto liqueur, mixing well.<br />
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Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 45 - 50 minutes until the top is firm to touch and a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.<br />
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Leave to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes, the transfer to a wire rack to cool.<br />
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Any way that's all for now, I'm off to plan my next bake<br />
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Kris xx<br />
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<br />cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-10753283010321773492013-03-25T14:10:00.001-07:002013-03-25T14:11:59.918-07:00Mothers day cupcakes, a Very Leopard Print Birthday and Easter Basket Cupcakes<br />
I have been very busy with cupcake orders recently. We've had valentines day which I thought was busy but then Mothers day came and I found myself having to make 92 cupcakes and a two tier Birthday cake over a weekend.<br />
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Here are just a couple of the Mothers day cakes I made<br />
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Both of these where Lemon flavour cupcakes with the bottom set decorated with hand made Lillies. These were my first attempt at flowers like this and I definitely want to get better and develop a wider range. <br />
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As i said earlier I also made a two tier Birthday cake over Mothers day weekend too. This was for my friend Alex. Last year I made her the pink princess birthday cake topped with feathers that can be seen in this <a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1534657369222769928#editor/target=post;postID=8084150492269469042">post</a><br />
and this year I wanted to make something even bigger and better. My friend is renowned for loving anything leopard print as well as anything with a bit of sparkle so I came up with this :<br />
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To get the leopard effect I used icing sheets round the side and a disc cut for the top and then I covered the joins on the top with piped icing. The sheets gave a really great effect and were easy enough to work with.<br />
The lettering around the cake reads "Happy Birthday Lady Alex" as me and a friend also bought her a Lady ship title as a gift (hehe) Any way she loved it and didn't even want to cut the leopard print tier at first.<br />
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Lastly today I have been getting ready this week for another busy cupcake making weekend with lots of Easter orders to be made. This week I have been practicing some designs ready and I think these ones are really cute:<br />
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The cupcakes are vanilla and I used vanilla frosting dyed green and piped using a multi holed nozzle to create a grass effect (this was harder on my hands than expected) I then used a strawberry licorice straw for a handle and decorated with tiny chocolate eggs. I'm now gearing up to decorate many more of these and a few other designs this weekend for Easter orders.<br />
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Any way that's all for today, no recipe this time but lots of pictures that I hope will inspire you.<br />
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Bye for now<br />
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Cupcake Kris xxx<br />
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<br />cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-3198371809945909872013-02-11T12:50:00.002-08:002013-02-11T12:51:24.736-08:00Red Velvet Cake and another Wedding. One of my best friends recently tied the knot and as well as being a bridesmaid I was also tasked with making her cake, this consisted of 130 vanilla cupcakes with both pink and white icing and butterfly decorations and then a top cake of Red Velvet cake filled with Cream Cheese frosting and covered in a white roll out fondant.<br />
Jen and her Husband Chris both love superheroes so they also wanted to incorporate this into the topper on the cake as well as with other elements of the wedding such as the table names and the sweet cart. Any way Jen loves Harley Quinn from Batman and she saw a perfect topper idea on the Internet then found a lady who would replicate it in clay resin (I think that's what they're made of right?)<br />
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Any way here's the cake.<br />
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As you can see some small crafty fingers had already taken a couple of cakes.<br />
And here's the topper:<br />
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As there were more cakes than the stand would hold the rest could be stored under the table to top up as guests helped themselves.<br />
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Any way as it's almost Valentines and I have have a few orders for red velvet cupcakes as well as a few people asking me about red velvet I thought I'd post the recipe I used for the top cake. As well as for this adorable cup cake (decorated with Red Velvet cake crumbs)<br />
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And here's how they're made: (Recipe via Hummingbird cake days)<br />
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Makes about 18 large cupcakes (can be easily halved)<br />
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<u><b>Red Velvet Cupcakes</b></u><br />
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120g Unsalted Butter<br />
300g Caster Sugar<br />
2 large eggs<br />
20g Cocoa Powder<br />
40ml Red food colouring Note: avoid natural red colourings as this will produce a duller and browner red. I use Silverspoon artificial Red food colour sold in sainsburys or Dr Oetker Red (not natural)<br />
1 tsp Vanilla Essence<br />
300g Plain Flour<br />
1tsp salt<br />
240ml Buttermilk<br />
1tbsp White Wine Vinegar<br />
1tsp Bicarbonate of Soda<br />
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Pre heat the oven to 190 degC.<br />
Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy and then add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until thoroughly mixed.<br />
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In a separate bowl, stir together the cocoa powder, food colouring and vanilla to form a paste. Add the paste to the batter and mix until fully incorporated.<br />
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Sift together the flour and salt and then add this to the batter in two batches, alternating with the buttermilk and mixing after each addition.<br />
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Finally in another bowl, mix together the vinegar and bicarbonate of soda and mix this into the cake batter.<br />
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Line a muffin tin with paper cases and fill. Bake in the oven for 18-20 minutes or until the sponge bounces back when lightly pressed. allow to cool before frosting.<br />
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<u><b>For the icing</b></u><br />
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100g Unsalted Butter, softened<br />
600g Icing Sugar (I actually used a bit less for a softer icing, more like 400g)<br />
250g Cream cheese (Again I used more like 200g)<br />
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Beat the butter and icing sugar with an electric whisk or mixer until you have a sandy consistency. Add the cream cheese and mix until everything is incorporated and the frosting is smooth and fluffy.<br />
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Decorate as desired.<br />
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For the big top tier of the wedding cake I used this recipe for each layer of the cake (The cake was 2 8" layers and quite deep, so for a smaller cake you may need to use less or divide between shallower tins) with a layer of cream cheese frosting in the centre. As this cake was in the oven for longer I double lined my cake tin both sides and bottom to ensure the sides didn't brown to much and stayed a nice red.<br />
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Any way that's all for now, I have quite a few of these cupcake for valentines day orders so I best start my shopping list for ingredients. Let me know if you make these for a loved one!<br />
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Bye for now<br />
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Cupcake Kris<br />
xx<br />
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<br />cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-36718879101571907402012-12-11T13:56:00.001-08:002012-12-11T13:57:19.142-08:00Lots of Birthdays and a WeddingWOW it has been over a month since I updated, I knew that would be the case in October / November as it is a very busy time for me with birthdays. A few of my good friends and also my boyfriend have had a Birthday n the last month and I've made cakes for them all as well as having another couple of cake orders on top of that including my first wedding cake. <br />
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I also had a little break away to Dublin for one of my good friends hen weekends and of course there were (very) early morning cupcakes for the flight over there. Dublin was a great city, I'd never been before but I was very impressed, it was also full of great little independent cafes with fresh food friendly staff and great coffee. I was particularly impressed by one we visited on day one called Brother Hubbard. full of brilliant fresh homemade cakes and tasty coffee. I had the flourless orange blossom and almond muffin with chocolate ganache and it was amazing. One of my friends has demanded I try to re create it myself. <br />
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Any way so I'll start with the Birthdays. The first Birthday I baked for recently was my friend Jen's who had Birthday / Halloween party. Jen is obsessed with zombies and particularly loves the walking dead so I thought I'd make her a cake in homage to that. I saw a few ideas online and ended up with this:<br />
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She was overjoyed with it and dubbed it the "best birthday cake ever" however I do think she is biased haha. I had a helper making this cake and it was brilliant, my friend Alex came round and was a brilliant helper helping make buttercream, roll out icing etc, I could get used to that! <br />
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The next cake was for an order for the next day and it was a copy of a cake I have made before just with different writing and it was chocolate inside I didn't get a picture of this but it was the same as <a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1534657369222769928#editor/target=post;postID=8084150492269469042">this one</a> <br />
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Then the other 2 birthday cakes were for the same day, these were for my boyfriend and one of my best friends Mandie, who have birthdays just a day apart and had a joint celebration meal. <br />
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For boyfriends cake I went for a Lego themed cake as he is a big kid at heart who loves Lego, here it is:<br />
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Finding something to cut the circles for the top was the hardest part but the bottom of a large piping nozzle worked. <br />
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And for Mandies cake she had requested that she didn't want " A boring normal shaped cake" so after toying with a few Ideas themed around her hobbies (one of which is indoor rock climbing) I made this cake: <br />
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She loved it and was especially grateful as she knows how much I hate making sugarpaste figures. <br />
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Ok so that was all the Birthdays, now onto the wedding. A friend asked me a while back if I would make her wedding cake for her, she only wanted a simple cake, nothing to over the top but still it was the most nerve wracking experience ever. It's such an important thing and I was a nervous wreck by the end of it! I even dreamt that a creature got in my house and ate the bottom tier (I know I'm crazy.) but both her and her husband were very happy with the finished cake and it was cut up in the evening for all the guests who seemed to enjoy it. Here it is: <br />
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You cant tell too much as the pictures are bright but the bottom and top layer had little pearlised dots. </div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H7MPHjR9-mY/UMerQEGaR9I/AAAAAAAAAck/C8Hzs0tv2Xk/s1600/644496_10152128674335401_1743687087_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H7MPHjR9-mY/UMerQEGaR9I/AAAAAAAAAck/C8Hzs0tv2Xk/s400/644496_10152128674335401_1743687087_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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And I just can't help tweaking. <br />
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The cake was fruit layer on the bottom, carrot for the second tier and vanilla for the top tier.<br />
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and that's it for now! back to all the Christmas baking. <br />
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<br />cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-72145497797230713572012-10-11T13:37:00.001-07:002012-10-11T13:38:05.363-07:00Double Chocolate and Raspberry cakeI'm being very bad and abandoning my blog again but time seems to get away from me so fast, I can't believe its soon time to start thinking about Christmas baking, ok I might have already started thinking about it haha.<br />
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Any way the list of cakes I've made and not had a chance to post about yet is growing so I thought that it's long overdue for an update.<br />
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Over the whole of this summer I have had an abundance of raspberry's from the garden (and they're still growing) so quite a lot of the recipes I have tested have has a few raspberry's thrown in at some point.<br />
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Any way what seems like a long time ago now Asda posted a recipe to their facebook page for a Double Chocolate Raspberry cake and who couldn't pass up an opportunity for a chocolate and raspberry combination!<br />
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The same recipe is also posted on goodtoknow.co.uk so I'm not sure where it originally came from. It's not the best written recipe, for instance it doesn't say the quantities of which to divide the white chocolate but I made enough chocolate curls to cover the top then put about a good tablespoon of white chocolate into my filling (any more seemed to make it too runny) and then used the rest as drizzle.<br />
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Any way here's my cake:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vykGc4bgLHQ/UHcZzu7IYCI/AAAAAAAAAas/_IiT4RdiXNw/s1600/cakeeeee+004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vykGc4bgLHQ/UHcZzu7IYCI/AAAAAAAAAas/_IiT4RdiXNw/s400/cakeeeee+004.JPG" width="265" /></a></div>
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And here's the recipe:<br />
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200g self-raising flour<br />
25g cocoa<br />
1 teaspoon baking powder<br />
225g butter, at room temperature, plus a little extra for greasing<br />
225g caster sugar<br />
4 eggs<br />
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<u>For the filling:</u> <br />
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200g white chocolate<br />
300ml double cream<br />
1 teaspoon vanilla extract<br />
300g fresh raspberries<br />
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Preheat the oven to 160°C.<br />
Sift the
flour, cocoa and baking powder into a bowl. Cream the butter and sugar
together in a mixing bowl until pale and fluffy.<br />
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Beat
in 1 egg then a spoonful of the flour mix. Continue adding eggs and
flour alternately until it has all been added and the mixture is smooth.<br />
Spoon
into your desired greased tins (i used 2 shallow 8 inch tins as it saved cutting the cake in half)<br />
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Smooth the top of the cake so it's level then bake for 35-40
minutes (as I used 2 shallow tins this was more like 30 mins) or until the top feels firm and a skewer comes out cleanly when
inserted into the centre of the cake.<br />
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Leave to cool in the tin
for a few minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.<br />
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Meanwhile unwrap and soften the block of white chocolate in the
microwave on full power for 10 seconds. With the flat side of the block
of white chocolate facing upwards, shave off chocolate curls by running
a swivel-bladed vegetable peeler over the top. If the curls are very
tiny, microwave the chocolate once more then try again. Chill the curls.<br />
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When
the cake is cold, break the remaining chocolate into pieces and melt in
a bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water.<br />
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Whip
the cream in a second bowl then fold in two thirds (i used a couple of table spoons but not to much or the cream may go to runny) of the melted
chocolate and the vanilla.<br />
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Cut the cake
into two layers if needed, put one of the layers on a serving plate, spoon over
half the cream then sprinkle with half the raspberries. Add the other
cake half and repeat the layers.<br />
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Drizzle the remaining
melted chocolate from a spoon in zigzag lines over the top of the cake
and finish with the chilled chocolate curls.<br />
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and that's it chocolate and raspberry, perfect! And it didn't last long (cakes with white chocolate don't tend to around me). It's also a great looking cake that wows guests, if not a little tricky to cut with all that cream. <br />
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any way that's all for today, next time I will update you on my very first wedding cake I recently and nerve wreckingly made<br />
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cupcake Kris <br />
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cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-90256776028920809442012-09-17T12:06:00.006-07:002012-09-17T12:08:34.698-07:00Lots of cakes to keep me busy Just a quick post today as I have been really busy recently, lots of baking amongst other things and gearing up to make my first weeding cake (eeek)<br />
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But I thought I'd update with a few pictures of some cakes I've been baking recently and then I promise I'll try to update with a recipe by the end of this week<br />
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any way first was a friends the Flash themed birthday cake:<br />
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Then I had an order for two extra chocolaty cakes covered in chocolate fondant and decorated simply but however I liked. here they are:<br />
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First one decorated with giant white chocolate buttons.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7YfL7qO5bv4/UFdv-x2yUVI/AAAAAAAAAZM/p-hBlyvanEg/s1600/cakeeeee+017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7YfL7qO5bv4/UFdv-x2yUVI/AAAAAAAAAZM/p-hBlyvanEg/s400/cakeeeee+017.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
Next one was a bit of a rush job with the decorating and I wasn't sure what to do but went with fondant roses and chocolate vines.<br />
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Then I had an order for some lemon cupcakes for a baby shower.:</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FfbTJK31SZQ/UFdxHBpg1UI/AAAAAAAAAZg/ivl0cJe42aE/s1600/cakeeeee+025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FfbTJK31SZQ/UFdxHBpg1UI/AAAAAAAAAZg/ivl0cJe42aE/s400/cakeeeee+025.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dRnkx2uh940/UFdx_DhXzUI/AAAAAAAAAZw/vWBTKwLaBys/s1600/cakeeeee+028.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dRnkx2uh940/UFdx_DhXzUI/AAAAAAAAAZw/vWBTKwLaBys/s400/cakeeeee+028.JPG" width="265" /></a></div>
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I wish I would have been able to make more of these cute little feet but I was short on fondant.<br />
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And lastly was an order for some cupcakes for a saints and sinners theme hen night!<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jJj6gnSS2OM/UFdyysNAMzI/AAAAAAAAAZ4/VyqdHQNfhoU/s1600/cakeeeee+031.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jJj6gnSS2OM/UFdyysNAMzI/AAAAAAAAAZ4/VyqdHQNfhoU/s400/cakeeeee+031.JPG" width="400" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HaHG1-dYXdY/UFdzIiHfC6I/AAAAAAAAAaE/-e5gBiEyMVM/s1600/cakeeeee+034.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HaHG1-dYXdY/UFdzIiHfC6I/AAAAAAAAAaE/-e5gBiEyMVM/s400/cakeeeee+034.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
Chocolate and Vanilla<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-k4qx98nVwDs/UFdzkVw4hzI/AAAAAAAAAaM/78hMmMg_cgo/s1600/cakeeeee+039.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-k4qx98nVwDs/UFdzkVw4hzI/AAAAAAAAAaM/78hMmMg_cgo/s400/cakeeeee+039.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
Are you a saint?<br />
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Or a sinner?<br />
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So that's it , no recipe for today but a lot of pictures. I have another bust few weeks coming up with weddings birthdays and lots of plans but as ever it will involve a lot of baking. then hopefully I'll get time to bake some new things for me just in time for Christmas (blimey where has the year gone! )<br />
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Until next time<br />
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Cupcake Kris cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-73288353533001972612012-08-16T07:49:00.000-07:002012-09-17T12:08:57.976-07:00Pecan Toffee tray bake and Shrek Birthday CakeSo a while back you may remember that I had a German friendship cake that just kept on going. I tried a few variations on the recipe and one of the favourites was Pecan fudge. After all the sourdough mix had finally gone from cluttering up my small work top and been given out I decided to adapt the pecan fudge cake to a normal tray bake square cake so that I could use up the leftover pecans and fudge, ok ok, I admit, I had to go and buy more fudge in the end because I ate the rest. <br />
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This was really just a basic cake but the flavours marry really well together and it came out soft and light. I even had to make another one a few days later as boyfriends brother liked it so much he wanted one to himself.<br />
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Any way, not the best pictures but here are some slices, right before they were scoffed.<br />
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And here's how it's made </div>
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80g Caster Sugar</div>
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100g Light brown soft sugar </div>
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170g Butter</div>
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3 eggs</div>
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170g Plain Flour </div>
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1 1/2 tsp baking powder</div>
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1 - 2 handfulls of pecans (broken up into chunks and left a few whole) </div>
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1 large handfull of all butter fudge cut into smaller chunks</div>
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Pre heat the oven to 180 deg C and grease and flour a square cake tin or deep tray. </div>
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Cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy, then add the eggs one at a time whisking as you go. </div>
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Then sift the flour and baking powder into the mixture and fold in until all the ingredients are combined. </div>
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Toss the pecans and fudge in a little flour and then stir into the mixture until evenly dispersed. </div>
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Bake in the pre heated oven for approx 20 minutes or until cooked through and a skewer inserted comes out clean. Slice into squares, decorating with more fudge or pecans if desired. </div>
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I found the flour did stop the pecans from sinking to the bottom of the cake but most of the fudge still sank and melted a little as it was heavier but it still tasted great. </div>
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I've also had a couple of big birthday cakes to make recently which I'll be posting here and here's the first, done a few weeks back. A Shrek themed cake for a 3rd Birthday: </div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-giYxOrBzrSY/UBmTcB4oVBI/AAAAAAAAAYM/gCaNaXCrPOQ/s1600/cakes+027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-giYxOrBzrSY/UBmTcB4oVBI/AAAAAAAAAYM/gCaNaXCrPOQ/s400/cakes+027.JPG" width="265" /></a></div>
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Inside was a vanilla sponge with ogre green icing. I'm cant really make models so I improvised with the 3 with Shrek ears and because I couldn't find any Shrek figure toys I attempted his face.<br />
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Any way that's all for today<br />
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Keep Baking<br />
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Cupcake Kris xxxcupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-1849761661177188102012-07-09T11:37:00.003-07:002012-07-09T11:38:47.602-07:00Chocolate Orange Shortbread and many cupcakes.I've just downloaded the pictures of recent cakes Ive been baking and realised I'd totally forgotten to show you all the cupcakes I made for the Queens Diamond Jubilee for a friends bake sale in work.<br />
so quite a bit late but oh well here they are:<br />
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I'm definitely going to be using the crown cutter I got to make some biscuits for a certain friend who thinks she is a princess.<br />
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I also made some vanilla cupcakes and chocolate orange cupcakes for another bake sale:<br />
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And some rude cupcakes for a hen party (avert your eyes children)<br />
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Any way in between all this I have found a little time to do some non cupcake baking in the form of chocolate orange dipped shortbread. I had half a chocolate orange left and I'd been meaning to make shortbread for a while so I thought I'd combine the two to make the shortbread extra naughty. Here it is:<br />
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and pre dipping:<br />
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I think I definitely prefer it with the chocolate. Shortbread is also a really simple recipe that doesn't require many ingredients unless you want to jazz it up with fillings such as cherry or chocolate to dip in. Here's how it's made:<br />
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Makes 8 wedges:<br />
<br />
<u><b>Chocolate Orange Shortbread </b></u><br />
<br />
175g Plain Flour<br />
Pinch of salt<br />
55g Caster Sugar (Plus extra for sprinkling)<br />
115g Butter chopped into small pieces, (plus extra for greasing)<br />
1/2 Chocolate orange (or any chocolate you wish to dip)<br />
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You could also add a grating of orange zest to the shortbread for that extra zing.<br />
<br />
Pre heat the oven to 150deg C and grease an 8 inch tart tin. Mix together the flour salt and sugar then rub in the butter into the dry ingredients. Work in the butter until you have a soft dough however do not over work or the shortbread will be tough not crumbly. Add a tablespoon of water if needed.<br />
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Lightly press the dough into the tart tin or shape on a baking tray and pinch the edges.<br />
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Mark into 8 pieces and prick all over with a fork and bake in the oven for 45 - 50 mins until firm an lightly coloured<br />
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Sprinkle with sugar and leave to cool in the tin before cutting into wedges.<br />
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In a bowl over pan of simmering water melt the chocolate until fully melted, then dip half of each piece of shortbread in or spread or drizzle the chocolate over. Leave to set in the fridge on a plate covered in clingfilm or greaseproof paper.<br />
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Once the chocolate is set store in a biscuit tin, or as what happened with my batch hand them out to be eaten all at once.<br />
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Till next time<br />
<br />
Cupcake Kris <br />
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<br />cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-20057941347035169192012-06-09T04:07:00.003-07:002012-09-17T12:09:20.747-07:00Double Chocolate Cookies and baking lessons with friends.Hey! again I've been away from the blog for a bit, busy baking for orders as well as carrying on making various incarnations of German friendship cake, It seemed for a while to be the cake that never ended as part of the sourdough mixture was passed between me and my mum for a while, and as tasty as all the different variations of cake I tried were (Pecan fudge was the favourite) I am kind of glad the bowl of sourdough is no longer cluttering up the worktop in my tiny kitchen.<br />
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I've also been away for a couple of days to the lovely Bath. The weather wasn't great but it's such a beautiful town and full of great restaurants and bakeries. They even have they're own bun, the Bath bun, it's sort of like a mix between brioche and a teacake and very yummy. There's also the Sally Lunn bun which is a very old recipe of a giant soft bread bun served in Sally Lunns house, the oldest house in Bath, here's the boyfriend with his Sally Lunn bun and some tea (he will kill me for posting this hehe)<br />
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Any way a couple of weeks ago my friends Chris and Jen popped round to my house just as I was taking a batch of Peanut butter cookies out of the oven (funny how well timed my friends visits can be) the cookies were enjoyed but Chris must have went home craving more as he asked if I would give him a cookie baking lesson. He hadn't baked a lot before and thought a lesson would be much more useful than simply following a recipe. So I sent him off to the shop with a list of ingredients ready for his first baking lesson. <br />
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We decided to make both the peanut butter cookies as well as double chocolate cookies. So we donned our aprons and got started. <br />
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The peanut butter ones turned out great as usual as this is a tried and tested recipe which can be found <a href="http://cupcakesmile.blogspot.co.uk/2010/10/peanut-butter-and-chocolate-chip.html">here.</a> <br />
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The Double Chocolate recipe I had required a bit of tweaking but in the end they turned out great, soft in the middle and really rich with chocolate. Here's Chris looking all proud with himself with the first batch of Double Chocolate:<br />
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I forgot to take a picture of just the cookies as I was too busy eating all of them.<br />
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I got the recipe from the hummingbird bakery and the cookies were rich and gooey and very chocolaty but I found I had to add quite a bit more flour that they suggested as the dough was too runny to begin with.<br />
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Any way here's the recipe (with my amendments)<br />
<h2 style="font-weight: normal;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><u>Double Chocolate Chip Cookies</u></span></h2>
Makes12<br />
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<b><span style="font-weight: normal;">50g unsalted butter</span><br style="font-weight: normal;" /><span style="font-weight: normal;">450g dark chocolate, roughly chopped</span><br style="font-weight: normal;" /><span style="font-weight: normal;">2 eggs</span><br style="font-weight: normal;" /><span style="font-weight: normal;">170g soft light brown sugar or light muscovado sugar (Again I used a little more to balance out the extra flour)</span><br style="font-weight: normal;" /><span style="font-weight: normal;">¼ tsp vanilla extract</span><br style="font-weight: normal;" /><span style="font-weight: normal;">85g plain flour (I used more like double this )</span><br style="font-weight: normal;" /><span style="font-weight: normal;">½ tsp salt</span><br style="font-weight: normal;" /><span style="font-weight: normal;">½ tsp baking powder</span></b><br />
Preheat
the oven to 170°C/gas 3. Put the butter and half the chocolate in a
heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (do not let the base
of the bowl touch the water). Leave until melted and smooth. <br />
Put
the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract in a bowl and beat
until well mixed. Pour in the chocolate mixture, beating on slow speed
until well combined.<br />
<br />
Sift the flour, salt and baking powder into a
separate bowl, then stir into the chocolate mixture in 3 additions,
mixing well after each addition (scrape any unmixed ingredients from the
side of the bowl with a rubber spatula). Finally, stir in the remaining
chocolate until evenly dispersed.<br />
<br />
Arrange 6 equal amounts of
cookie dough on each prepared baking tray. Make sure that the cookies
are spaced apart to allow for spreading while baking. Bake in the
preheated oven for 10-15 minutes, checking regularly after 10 minutes.
They are ready when the tops start to crack and look glossy. Leave the
cookies to cool slightly on the trays before turning out onto a wire
cooling rack to cool completely.<br />
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Again these turned out really tasty but be prepared to have to fiddle around with the mixture to get the right consistency.<br />
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That's all for today any way I have a lot of orders this coming week but I'm gonna try and bake a few new things as well<br />
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Bye for now<br />
<br />
Cupcake Kris <br />
<br />cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-45624293990198620532012-05-09T02:08:00.000-07:002012-05-09T02:08:37.761-07:00Birthday Cakes Galore<br />
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The last couple of weeks I have been kept busy with Birthday orders, its a busy time for friends and family birthdays in my world and they all seem to want cake (well who can blame them) <br />
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As I mentioned in my last blog I needed to make a birthday cake for my little brothers 16th Birthday. There was no party but we were having a family dinner and that always requires cake. As i wanted practising covering a cake with Chocolate icing I went for a triple layered chocolate cake with chocolate butter cream and covered in a layer of roll out chocolate icing. I had bought loads of big jazzies to decorate this with however after I'd put the lettering on they didn't look quite right so it was decorated with Dr. Oetker Mini Jazzies to look like polka dots. and they were so mini they were just to cute not to use. <br />
The recipe I used for the layers of the cake was the same as I use for my chocolate cupcakes <a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1534657369222769928#editor/target=post;postID=4485553080495031054">here</a> I just tripled it so I had enough mix for the 3 layers. <br />
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And here is the cake: <br />
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I also recently had to make a Spiderman themed cake for my friends Nephews birthday, He was 5 and is obsessed with Spiderman. I just went with a vanilla cake triple layer with vanilla butter cream and the decorated Spiderman style with a city night scene and web, in the appropriate colours. <br />
It did also eventually have a little spiderman figure on top however that was placed on after the photo was taken. <br />
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Here it is: <br />
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<br />The only other thing I've had time to bake was a mass of peanut butter cookies (recipe in an earlier blog) that I was guilt tripped into making by the boyfriend for giving the last piece of chocolate cake away (oops). So I haven't had a chance to make anything new, but I'm planning on working on fixing that this week. <br />
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Bye for now <br />
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Cupcake Kris xxxcupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-88222627011566997742012-04-27T02:32:00.003-07:002012-04-27T02:32:51.305-07:00Chocolate Marmalade cake and my German Friendship cake<br />
I was in the Lake District a few weeks back and tasted the loveliest chocolate orange cake in a little cafe. I asked the man in the cafe for the recipes and he informed me it was Nigella Lawsons Chocolate marmalade cake (although like mine, he had covered his cake in a chocolate orange ganache.) <br />
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So this week I found the recipe and decided it was time to recreate the tasty cake. The cake itself turned out nice, it tasted a lot better than it looked but that was my fault. It was lighter in colour and not as rich as I remember, I might add a little more chocolate last time although I think it doesn't need it with the chocolate Ganache. The cake sank a little in the middle (as had the man's in the cafe) so I might play around with the recipe a little to try and rectify this next time. Overall though it tasted great and the topping made it rich enough that you didn't need to much (but still had to much, in my case.) As I said it tasted better than it looked and this was my fault mainly because on removing it from the tin I managed to drop it on my chopping board so it was a little pieced together and flattened before i covered it. Any way, here it is:<br />
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And here's how it's made :<br />
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125g Unsalted butter<br />100g Dark chocolate<br />300g good quality orange marmalade<br />150g Caster Sugar <br />
a pinch of salt<br />2 Large eggs<br />150g Self-rising flour<br />
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Melt the butter slowly in a saucepan. When it's almost melted, add chocolate pieces, stir and take off the heat. Stir with a wooden spoon, until chocolate has melted.<br />Add the marmalade, sugar, salt and eggs. Stir thoroughly (it's okay to leave small visible chunks of marmalade in the batter).<br />Add sifted flour, stir and pour into a buttered and floured 20-22 cm loose bottomed cake tin.<br />Bake at 180˚C oven for 45-50 minutes, until the cake has set. Leave to cool in the tin slightly then finish cooling on a wire rack. <br />
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To cover the cake I used <br />
<br />
100ml Double Cream <br />
180g Dark Chocolate, chopped into chunks. <br />
2-3 drops of orange essence<br />
zest of orange (optional)<br />
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Warm the double cream gently in a pan with the orange extract and add the chocolate, stir until melted. <br />
Leave to cool slightly before spreading over the cake and then garnish with a little zest of orange and leave to set in the fridge. <br />
Also this week I got to bake my German Sourdough friendship cake that I mentioned in my last blog. Before adding the remaining ingredients and baking I split the mixture into 4, gave one part to my sister, one to my Mum and one to a friend in work. They have started at step one and I followed the recipe on the instructions, adding a little extra here and there and an extra egg (so it was big enough to bake in my bunt tin rather than a tray) and then it was done, and before I knew it it was gone! It was really tasty, I took half into work, which didn't last long and left the rest at home and that was gone almost half as quick. I will definitely be making another one of these in the future, maybe making my own starter mix so I can carry on baking them at will. Any way here it is:<br />
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The darker patches are where it was drizzled in melted butter and sugar, mmmmmmm.<br />
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Filled with apple and raisins.<br />
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Any way that's all for today, I have to go and make another cake now as it's my little brothers birthday tomorrow.<br />
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Cupcake Kris xxxcupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-26453301232898534392012-04-15T10:35:00.001-07:002012-04-15T10:35:47.859-07:00A Very Flowery Birthday CakeWow I can't believe I haven't blogged in nearly 3 weeks. It's not from the lack of baking either. I've been busy over Easter making creme egg Easter chicks for friends (featured in the last post) and a big Victoria sponge for a BBQ as well as numerous hot cross buns. I used the same recipe as last year, which can be found <a href="http://cupcakesmile.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/easter-baking-cranberry-and-orange-hot.html">here</a>. However some I just used mixed dried fruit for rather than cranberry and orange. I also used the dough for a bath of 12 and made a hot cross bun loaf instead. Unfortunately as my friends and family rather like hot cross buns they had all gone before I realised I hadn't even taken a picture.<br />
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I also had an order for a carrot cake for Easter Saturday, I used this <a href="http://cupcakesmile.blogspot.co.uk/2010/09/carrot-cake-and-charity-bake-sale.html">recipe</a><span id="goog_145725595">. However I did take a picture of one cake I made recently. I had an order for a 30th Birthday cake for a girl. I was told she liked flowers but not really pink and it had to have Happy 30th Emma on it and this is what I came up with: </span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The base is a basic Victoria sponge base with vanilla butter cream in 3 layers. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I was quite happy with it, however I still think I need quite a bit more practise on levelling and icing the cake, I could really do with some better equipment of taking a class but it's just finding the time. Plus I much prefer making smaller cakes or naked un iced cakes any way but that's more for home baking I suppose. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Well no recipe for today as I haven't made anything I haven't posted before, I do currently have a German sourdough friendship cake in the process. I was given a starter and some instructions by a friend and everyday you stir the mixture, adding milk flour and sugar every few days and then after 10 days you split the mixture into 4, use a quarter to follow the recipe and make the cake and give the other 3 batches to friends with the instructions to start the process again. Its currently sitting on my worktop half way through the process, so I hope it's successful and that I manage to think of who to give the other 3 batches too. It's good the way it carries on, it's like the cake that never ends! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Lastly I just want to point out I've now put a little search bar in the left hand corner of the screen so you can search previous recipes I have posted. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Any way I will post a picture of my friendship cake when it's done until then </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Cupcake Kris xxx </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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</span>cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-815488580529225022012-03-26T12:56:00.000-07:002012-03-26T12:56:48.299-07:00Lemon Raspberry Mothers day cupcakes and Creme egg Easter chick.As last week was Mothers day I was hoping to bake a treat for my mum, although I had too many cup cake orders and too little time that I wasn't able to bake her anything, oops, maybe next week!<br />
I did however complete some orders for my friends mums and grandma's. I made 2 flavours cherry coconut, and lemon raspberry with lemon icing. And here they are:<br />
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The Cherry Coconut :<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--HIqSaqPpe4/T2pREtj0v9I/AAAAAAAAAUg/LpJWx5nbyY0/s1600/MOTHERS+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--HIqSaqPpe4/T2pREtj0v9I/AAAAAAAAAUg/LpJWx5nbyY0/s400/MOTHERS+007.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
And the Lemon Raspberry:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DwGPEr-mMN4/T2pSdrtfnMI/AAAAAAAAAUo/LLJ5JMcfJso/s400/MOTHERS+001.JPG" width="400" /> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The recipe for the cherry coconut can be found <a href="http://cupcakesmile.blogspot.co.uk/2011/05/cherry-coconut-cupcakes-easter-cupcakes.html">here. </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And for the Lemon Raspberry: </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes:</u></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">115g Butter, softened</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">115g Caster Sugar </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">2 Eggs </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">115g Plain flour</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">1 1/2 tsp Baking powder<br />
80 - 100g Raspberry's<br />
Zest of 1 Lemon</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">2 - 3tbsp Lemon juice</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
Preheat oven to 180degC and line a bun tray with 12 cases. <br />
<br />
Put the butter and sugar into a bowl and cream together until light and fluffy. Gradually add the eggs, beating well after each addition. Add the lemon zest and juice. Sift in the flour and baking powder and fold them into the mixture. Toss the raspberry's in a little flour and then fold into the mixture. <br />
Spoon the mixture into the cases and bake for about 18-20 minutes until well risen and golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">For the frosting: </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">250g Icing sugar <br />
80g Butter<br />
Few drops of lemon flavouring (or alternatively a squeeze of lemon juice and a little lemon zest)<br />
25ml whole milk<br />
Couple of drops of Yellow food colouring (optional)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> Beat together the icing sugar, butter, flavouring and food colouring, then slowly beat in the milk until you have the correct consistency and the icing is light and fluffy. Pipe or spread over cooled cakes. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And that's it! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">also this week I have been practising some little Easter gifts for friends using a creme egg. Here's one: </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IhfCEbteBw8/T3DIRYl5i4I/AAAAAAAAAUw/cLU-vqZcB_g/s1600/MOTHERS+018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IhfCEbteBw8/T3DIRYl5i4I/AAAAAAAAAUw/cLU-vqZcB_g/s400/MOTHERS+018.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oN30hc0zAXI/T3DIl9gF6QI/AAAAAAAAAU4/KDvns-vnBvI/s1600/MOTHERS+016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oN30hc0zAXI/T3DIl9gF6QI/AAAAAAAAAU4/KDvns-vnBvI/s400/MOTHERS+016.JPG" width="265" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
Oh hai! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Any way that was my first try and I'll be making some more this week for friends, I got the idea from <a href="http://www.thepinkwhisk.co.uk/2012/03/how-to-make-an-easter-chick.html">The Pink Whisk</a> where you will find a handy tutorial video. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Any way that's all for now. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Cupcake Kris xxx</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div>cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-56125272276034309442012-03-15T14:59:00.000-07:002012-03-15T14:59:49.303-07:00On a different note.And now on to a more serious note, I know it doesn't exactly fit in with the theme of my blog but I want to urge you all to take a look at one of my friends blogs. Jen is a lovely girl of just 24 with a great family and two beautiful children. However she has recently found out she has Hodgkin's Lymphoma. She is one of the bravest people I know and she is documenting her journey here.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://dontworryaboutjen.blog.com/why-im-blogging/">dont worry about jen</a><br />
<br />
It's a wonderful blog that not only raises awareness of the subject but also helps herself and others who are going through the same thing. She is doing a wonderful thing in writing it and through it she is documenting her ups, downs, feelings and all the little worries that she thinks about, as well as the bigger picture. It is an emotional read but Jen's positive attitude shines though in her writing and you can truly get a picture of the loving wonderful person she is, through writing this I think she is not only going to have an outlet for everything that's in her head but she is going to help so many other people whether they be people going through the same thing or friends and family of people that are. She writes with honesty and detail which will put other sufferers at ease knowing that they are not alone which is just like Jen as she is very selfless and always thinking of others.<br />
<br />
I hope you all follow her story and progress and wish her well as I'm very proud of what she is doing here, despite all that is happening to her. She is as I said a very brave person with strong determination so I know she is going to come through this on top. Please send out your love to my friend and like her help raise awareness because as she says "I’m a very open person but maybe they aren’t and it’s very comforting to know when somebody has gone through something similar to you and your not alone."cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-80841504922694690422012-03-15T14:55:00.002-07:002012-03-18T11:53:31.124-07:00A Very Princess BirthdayPhew, I think March is definitely my busiest Month for cakes as well as having a couple of cupcake orders last week I have 66 cupcakes to make this week alone for birthdays, bake sales, St Patrick's day and Mothers day. I love it though and I'm hopefully also going to have time to try a few new flavours out too and prepare for making batches of hot cross buns for Easter.<br />
<br />
However my most important baking adventure last week was definitely a surprise birthday cake for one of my best friends Alex, or as I call her, Princess! We were going for a meal for Alex's birthday and I'd decided I definitely wanted to drop a cake off at the restaurant for them to bring out, knowing full well she would relish in the fuss over her! haha. Any way all I had to do was decide on the design of the cake. I went with a plain Vanilla sponge with buttercream as Alex and a few other friends have given up chocolate for lent (Madness) and for the design there was really only one option, over the top bling! Alex loves anything sparkly and over the top, so I knew straight away a girly over the top cake was were I was headed. I decided on pink icing with princess Alex written in white, I then had to find something for the middle! And then I found the giant pink feathers and sparkly stars! So they blocked the word princess from view at the front but it really didn't matter as they were so very Alex. Any way here's the cake:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HM_vd0LYHNw/T2JdS7gMEeI/AAAAAAAAAUA/YxbNQwBcXYw/s1600/princess+001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HM_vd0LYHNw/T2JdS7gMEeI/AAAAAAAAAUA/YxbNQwBcXYw/s400/princess+001.JPG" width="265" /></a></div><br />
And the back:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Z4zBwH4B-mE/T2JeU7YZjDI/AAAAAAAAAUI/bTeeIfW5B2w/s1600/princess+003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Z4zBwH4B-mE/T2JeU7YZjDI/AAAAAAAAAUI/bTeeIfW5B2w/s400/princess+003.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Any way the cake was very well received and her face when they brought it out in the restaurant was priceless and well worth the effort of making it! Here's a little closer picture of the bling!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kOe7rDyejl0/T2JfJ2FM5ZI/AAAAAAAAAUQ/hkZmK3kf-X8/s1600/princess+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kOe7rDyejl0/T2JfJ2FM5ZI/AAAAAAAAAUQ/hkZmK3kf-X8/s400/princess+007.JPG" width="265" /></a></div><br />
And that's the princess cake.<br />
<br />
I've linked up to <a href="http://sweet-as-sugar-cookies.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/sweets-for-saturday-61.html">sweets for saturday</a>cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-15483832814150734082012-03-07T12:37:00.001-08:002012-03-07T12:37:46.485-08:00Mmmmmm warm and tasty Cherry PieCherry pie is one of the boyfriends favourite desserts (he has a lot of favourites) and it's something I've been meaning to bake for a while.<br />
<br />
I actually made this a week or so ago but I've been quite busy and have just come back from a lovely weekend away in the lakes that involved lots of walking, hiking, relaxing and a lot of good food including some amazing homemade cakes.<br />
<br />
Any way back to the cherry pie, it's such a simple but tasty desert and is one of those desserts I see as homely proper baking perfect for curling up on the couch with on a cold night. I'm not a massive fan of pies but the pastry was lovely and soft with a crisp top and not to dry and the filling was super tasty, the almond extract and added brandy (optional) give it a lovely taste. Here it is:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DhD_Hma856w/T1e2yWRRecI/AAAAAAAAATw/vZJdFTexM_s/s1600/pie+bob+019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DhD_Hma856w/T1e2yWRRecI/AAAAAAAAATw/vZJdFTexM_s/s400/pie+bob+019.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Ok so boyfriend couldn't wait till I'd taken a picture to have a warm slice so it's a rushed very bad picture of most of the pie, the filling also was more than it looks on this picture.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-alGHw5xQ67g/T1e3fZTDY9I/AAAAAAAAAT4/XHILJBWVZMI/s1600/pie+bob+030.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-alGHw5xQ67g/T1e3fZTDY9I/AAAAAAAAAT4/XHILJBWVZMI/s400/pie+bob+030.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Next time I will try to be more uniform and neat with my lattice top but I wasn't very patient this time.<br />
<br />
Any way here's how it's made:<br />
<br />
<u>Cherry lattice pie:</u> (via the big book of baking) <u><br />
</u><br />
<u><br />
</u><br />
<u>For the pastry:</u><br />
<br />
140g Plain flour, plus extra for dusting<br />
1/4 tsp Baking powder<br />
1/2 tsp Mixed spice<br />
pinch Salt<br />
50g Caster sugar<br />
55g Unsalted butter, diced, plus extra for greasing<br />
1 egg Beaten plus extra for glazing.<br />
<u><br />
</u><br />
<u>For the filling:</u><br />
<br />
900g Stoned fresh cherries or canned cherries, drained (and stoned if not already)<br />
150g Caster sugar<br />
1/2 tsp Almond extract<br />
2 tsp Cherry brandy (optional) - regular brandy can also be used.<br />
1/4 tsp Mixed spice<br />
2 tbsp Cornflour<br />
2tbsp Water<br />
25g Butter<br />
<br />
To make the pastry, sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl. Stir in the mixed spice salt and sugar then rub in the butter until the mixture has a breadcrumb like consistency. Add the beaten egg and mix into a firm dough, adding a few drops of water if needed. roll into a ball and wrap in clingfilm, Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.<br />
<br />
Preheat the oven to 220degC and grease a 9 inch round tart tin. Cut the pastry in half and roll out into two rounds, using one to line the tin.<br />
<br />
To make the filling, put half the cherries with the sugar into a pan and bring to a simmer over a low heat, stirring until the sugar has melted. stir in the almond extract, brandy and mixed spice. In a separate bowl mix together the cornflour and water. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cornflour paste, then return to the heat and stir until the mixture boils and thickens. Leave to cool a little before stirring in the remaining cherries. Pour this into the pastry case and dot with butter.<br />
<br />
Cut the remaining pastry round into strips and lay some across the pie and then the remainder running the other way, folding under every other strip to form a lattice, I found that you need to lift the strips right up to do this without getting covered in filling so make sure you don't stick any ends down until your done. Trim off the edges and seal with water. Crimp around the rim with your fingers or a fork the brush the top with beaten egg.<br />
<br />
Cover with foil then bake in the oven for 30 mins then remove the foil and bake for a further 15 minutes or until golden.<br />
<br />
<br />
And that's all. I have loads of cupcake orders for March, it's a busy month for birthday's and holidays so I'm off to get planning the next batch.<br />
<br />
Cupcake Kris<br />
xxxcupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-57078720663313251982012-02-20T13:57:00.000-08:002012-02-20T13:57:47.743-08:00Chocolate Eclairs and Valentine CupcakesI have had a long weekend this week with an extra day off from work, although I have been very busy dealing with buttercream of another nature. I decided to paint my dining room and part of my living room and the colour I chose was called buttercream, proving that definitely almost every part of my thinking is ruled by baking.<br />
<br />
but today after all that painting I have been making chocolate eclairs, I first made these a few days ago and they tasted fine however were a little smaller than I wanted and I didn't wait for the chocolate icing to set a little before topping (well I was hungry) so they didn't look as neat as todays lot, they also didn't last long enough for me to take a picture (oops) so today I used that as a good excuse to make some more, of course it just wasn't that I wanted to eat more it was definitely all the name of getting a picture (hehe).<br />
<br />
Any way, they are really yummy and the pastry cream is very moorish, i usually always bake cake rather than pastry but i will definitely be making these more for friends and family (or maybe just me!) here they are:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hfDdAtfTSLQ/T0K2lzAeahI/AAAAAAAAATI/tYiUI4LwVWY/s1600/eclairs+036.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hfDdAtfTSLQ/T0K2lzAeahI/AAAAAAAAATI/tYiUI4LwVWY/s400/eclairs+036.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-v-GO5p--73E/T0K26mgfDYI/AAAAAAAAATQ/LuPoxuJd4RA/s1600/eclairs+039.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-v-GO5p--73E/T0K26mgfDYI/AAAAAAAAATQ/LuPoxuJd4RA/s400/eclairs+039.JPG" width="265" /></a></div><br />
And filled with yummy pastry cream,<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jKGNGA0cr-8/T0K3SYVU8AI/AAAAAAAAATY/3PxNdubcThg/s1600/eclairs+043.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jKGNGA0cr-8/T0K3SYVU8AI/AAAAAAAAATY/3PxNdubcThg/s400/eclairs+043.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<br />
and here's how they are made:<br />
<br />
<u>Chocolate Eclairs</u><br />
<br />
For the choux pastry:<br />
<br />
150ml Water<br />
70g Butter, diced<br />
100g Plain Flour, sifted<br />
2 eggs<br />
<br />
For the pastry cream:<br />
<br />
2 Eggs<br />
4tbsp Caster Sugar<br />
2tbsp Cornflour<br />
300ml Milk<br />
1/4 tsp Vanilla Extract<br />
<br />
For the icing:<br />
<br />
2tbsp Butter<br />
1tbsp Milk<br />
1tbsp Cocoa<br />
55g Icing Sugar<br />
<br />
Pre heat oven to 200degC and lightly grease a couple of baking trays.<br />
Place the water in a saucepan with the butter and heat gently until the butter melts, bring to a rolling boil. remove the saucepan from the heat and add the flour all at once beating well until the mixture leave the sides of the saucepan and forms a ball. Leave to cool slightly, then gradually beat in the eggs until you have a smooth, glossy mixture. Spoon into a piping bag fitted with a large round nozzle, I found a disposable piping bag with the end cut off worked fine.<br />
<br />
Sprinkle the baking trays with a little water and pipe the eclairs well spaced apart with room to rise. Bake in the oven for around 30 minutes or until crisp and golden in colour. Make a small slit in the side of each eclair then cool on a wire rack.<br />
<br />
For the pastry cream. Whisk the eggs and caster sugar until thick and creamy then whisk in the cornflour. Heat the milk until almost boiling and pour onto the egg mixture whilst beating. Transfer these to a saucepan and cook over a low heat stirring until thick. (This part is really important as the first time i stopped stirring and turned my back for a second and the mixture had thickened, so for a smooth mixture, stick with stirring) Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Leave to cool.<br />
<br />
To make the icing, melt the butter with the milk, remove from the heat and then stir in the sugar and cocoa. Leave to chill and set slightly.<br />
<br />
Split the eclairs lengthways and pipe in the cooled cream. Spread the icing over the top of the eclairs. This time I made the icing in advance and waited until it had almost set and piped on top in ribbons. <br />
<br />
The eclairs can then be decorated with a mix of icing sugar and water piped on (as I have here) or some melted white chocolate drizzled over.<br />
<br />
and that's it!<br />
<br />
Also as last week was valentines I also had some orders for valentines cupcakes, some were decorated with rolos (last rolos) and sprayed with edible silver and the others with cream cheese frosting and sugar hearts, and they were very well received. here they are:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uheKoDdoHsw/T0LAgaoesnI/AAAAAAAAATg/MA6dY1kzjsU/s1600/eclairs+012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uheKoDdoHsw/T0LAgaoesnI/AAAAAAAAATg/MA6dY1kzjsU/s400/eclairs+012.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zsdLxK116lA/T0LAu4Fs9KI/AAAAAAAAATo/QF0HHdHV22Y/s1600/eclairs+028.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zsdLxK116lA/T0LAu4Fs9KI/AAAAAAAAATo/QF0HHdHV22Y/s400/eclairs+028.JPG" width="400" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Well that's all for today, now to plan what to bake next... after I eat this last eclair. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">xxx</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div>cupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-91771973497245486642012-02-09T14:12:00.000-08:002012-02-09T14:12:03.207-08:00Light and Fluffy Chocolate Mocha Cake and After Eight CupcakesOne of my best friends is on what she calls the wedding dress diet so when me and a few others were visiting her house last week and bringing all sorts of treats to eat round I couldn't leave her out but wanted to give her a lower fat option so she didn't feel to guilty when having a treat.<br />
<br />
Of course I couldn't possibly bring myself to only make and eat low fat cake so I also made some sinful cupcakes too to make up for all that light airy but not so guilty baking.<br />
<br />
For the lower fat cake I used my trusty good food cakes app on my Ipod touch as I knew they had a specific section for low fat cakes. I'd already decided (as I had most of the ingredients) that it was going to involve chocolate in some way so I decided on the Light and Fluffy Chocolate Mocha Cake. It's only 180kcal a slice with only 3g of saturated fat per slice, mainly due to the lack of butter and oil. and here it is:<br />
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My cake is a little thinner as I didn't have the right size tin and I have to admit the cake in their picture looked far darker in colour, I have a sneaky suspicion they cheated and added more cocoa (or maybe it's just their photography)I was also meant to take a picture of the cake once cut but I forgot as I often to when there's cake to be eaten. <br />
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The base of the cake itself is made in a way I have never tried before (you need a table top mixer or an electric hand whisk) and it does indeed make the cake very airy and light, It's not intensely chocolaty and the filling and topping is made using fat free Greek yogurt, I'd say it's not a very indulgent cake but hey, what do you want for low fat, and considering the amount of calories per slice it's definitely worth a go if you want a treat but are trying to be good. <br />
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Any way, here's how it's made:<br />
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Light and Fluffy Chocolate Mocha Cake, via Good food cake app. <br />
<br />
<u>For the cake </u><br />
<br />
3 Large Eggs<br />
85g Caster Sugar <br />
70g Plain Flour<br />
1tbsp Cornflour<br />
2tbsp Cocoa<br />
1/2 tsp baking powder <br />
<br />
<u>For the Icing / Filling</u><br />
<br />
25g Dark Chocolate chopped (Don't use 75% or the icing will be to bitter)<br />
1tbsp Strong Black Coffee <br />
100g Light Soft Cheese<br />
100g 0% Greek Yogurt<br />
2tbsp Icing Sugar <br />
<br />
<u>To decorate</u> <br />
<br />
15g Dark Chocolate chopped<br />
<br />
Pre heat the oven to 180dgC. Lightly butter 2 x18cm Sandwich tins and then line the bases with baking paper.<br />
Whisk the eggs and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 mins in a tabletop mixer of 10 mins with an electric hand whisk. The mix will have increased greatly in volume and be thick enough to leave a trail and the surface when the blades are lifted. <br />
Sift the flour, cornflour, cocoa and baking powder over the surface of the egg mix and fold in gently using a large metal spoon. Divide between the tins, gentry spreading to the edges, then bake for 15-20 mins until the cakes are well risen, have begun to shrink away from the sides of the tins and spring back when gently pressed. Leave to cool in the tins for 5 mins then turn out onto a wire rack to cool.<br />
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To decorate, microwave the chocolate and coffee together for about 20-30 seconds until the chocolate has melted. Gently stir until smooth, then cool slightly. Beat the soft cheese with the yogurt and and icing sugar until smooth, spoon half this mixture into a bowl stir in the melted chocolate and set aside.<br />
Place one cake on a serving plate and spread with the yogurt mixture, cover with the other cake, then spread the chocolate yogurt mixture on top.<br />
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To finish, melt the 15g of chocolate, stir until smooth, cool slightly then drizzle over the cake. <br />
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And that's it! <br />
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As I said before I also made some full fat chocolate cakes too, I made a batch of After eight cupcakes. A chocolate peppermint cupcake topped with mint frosting and a mint chocolate. Here they are: <br />
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The recipe is the same as my <a href="http://cupcakesmile.blogspot.com/2010/12/christmas-baking-mint-chocolate-candy.html">Mint chocolate candy cane</a> recipe except using a bit of Green food colour in the icing and topping with a mint chocolate instead of crushed candy cane. I preferred these far more than the low fat cake, but they do come with an extra serving of guilt. Oh well if I have both that evens it out right?<br />
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Any way that's all for today, I'm off to eat a failed batch of macaroons all in one go and pretend they never existed. <br />
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Bye for now<br />
<br />
Cupcake Kriscupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-37278464747443318802012-01-23T12:40:00.000-08:002012-01-23T12:40:46.749-08:00Cinnamon RollsHello, yet again I feel I have abandoned my blog of late and I haven't updated in a while. I've still been keeping up with all the wonderful blogs I follow and copying lots and lots of recipes down for baking in the future. I haven't had much chance to bake myself though which has made me very sad. But I have been happily busy with lots of exciting things!<br />
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One of my best friends is getting married next January and I was delighted that she has asked me to be a bridesmaid! she has also asked me to bake all the cupcakes for the wedding so there has been a lot of planning and looking at pictures of cupcakes and cases that she would like. I have also been a dutiful bridesmaid and we all went along to a wedding fair to look at all the pretty things and organise some of the most important aspects of the wedding (Chocolate fountain!)<br />
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I've also had an important cocktail meeting with friends, went to the cinema to see The Artist (Brilliant and I'm just in love with Uggie the little dog) and then this weekend I've been enjoying the Chinese new year festivities watching the dragon dance and then out to dinner at my favourite restaurant. <br />
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I have found a little time to bake though, and on Saturday morning I was craving Cinnamon rolls. I love these as they are so sweet and tasty but somehow, and I'm not quite sure why (Maybe it's the cinnamon) I still feel like it's acceptable to eat them for breakfast (Not that that usually stops me eating cake for breakfast)<br />
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Any way here they are: <br />
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And here's how they are made:<br />
<br />
<b><u>Cinnamon Rolls </u></b><br />
<br />
Makes 8<br />
<br />
350g Self raising Flour <br />
Pinch of Salt<br />
3 tbsp Caster Sugar<br />
1 1/2 Tsp Ground Cinnamon<br />
100g Butter, melted<br />
2 egg yolks<br />
200ml Milk<br />
<br />
<u>For the filling </u><br />
<br />
1 heaped tsp Ground Cinnamon<br />
55g Soft light brown Sugar <br />
2 tbsp Caster Sugar<br />
1 tbsp Butter, Melted<br />
<br />
<u>Topping </u><br />
<br />
2 tbsp icing sugar <br />
water<br />
<br />
Pre heat the oven to 180deg C and grease an 8 inch round cake tin and line the base with baking paper.<br />
<br />
Mix the flour, salt caster sugar and cinnamon together in a large bowl. Beat together the butter, milk and egg yolks and add these to the dry ingredients. Combine until a soft dough is formed. <br />
<br />
Turn out onto a floured surface (or floured baking paper for ease of rolling up) and roll out a rectangle of 10inches by 12 inches, approx. <br />
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Mix the filling ingredients together in a bowl and spread this mixture evenly over the dough. Roll the dough up like a Swiss roll to form a log and cut this into 8 slices. Arrange these around the tin and brush with a little milk to glaze. <br />
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Bake in the oven for 30 - 35 minutes or until golden brown. Leave to cool slight;y and then remove from the tin.<br />
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If desired the buns can then be iced with a little icing drizzled over, Just combine 2 tbsp icing sugar with a few drops of water and drizzle this over the buns. <br />
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Then pull apart and eat as desired, nom!<br />
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I made these on Saturday and there is only one left and I am ashamed to say that I ate all but one of the eaten rolls, ooops. Oh well I'll start the healthy eating / exercise plan again tomorrow.<br />
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Any way that's it for now, hope you all had a lovely weekend. <br />
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Cupcake Kriscupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1534657369222769928.post-10287960655327546432012-01-09T14:20:00.000-08:002012-01-09T14:20:12.031-08:00Mincemeat Spice Muffins.Well I hope you all had a lovely holiday, I haven't posted in a couple of weeks as I've just been getting back into the swing of things, taking the decorations down, going back to work and already breaking my resolutions. The holidays are officially over, oh boo :( lets all have some cake to cheer ourselves up hey? <br />
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Any way I hope you all had a great New Year, I spent mine eating yummy food with fabulous friends and then drinking a lot of wine, It was very much enjoyed. <br />
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So after all the copious amounts of cake I made over Christmas were eaten, I somehow still had some surplus ingredients, including most of a big jar of mincemeat left over from making mince pies. So I looked for a new recipe that would use this up as I think I've eaten enough mince pies for a year. I fancied something a bit lighter than a mince pie but that could still be made quickly and with relatively few ingredients. <br />
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I came across a recipe for Christmas Snowflake muffins in The Big Book of Baking, However I have changed the name as because I don't have a snowflake cutter to cut out the icing to top the cakes with the name seemed a little silly. Any way here they are :<br />
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I topped some with a disc of fondant and left some plain. <br />
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They came out really nice, the smell just after they come out of the oven is wonderful and the muffins themselves are really light with a good hint of spice and warming fruit. I added some chopped cherries to my batch as my mincemeat wasn't as packed with as much of a variety of fruit as I'd like, this recipe is quite flexible so all different fruit / nuts could be added.<br />
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On making my second batch of these I decided to use more mincemeat for that extra kick of flavour and filling. But apart from that the cakes were definitely yummy and a perfect use of any leftover mincemeat or a good excuse to take advantage of the half price offers on it in the shops. <br />
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Here's how they are made:<br />
<br />
<u>Mincemeat Spice Muffins (Christmas Snowflake Muffins) </u><br />
<br />
Makes 12:<br />
<br />
280g Plain Flour <br />
1 tbsp Baking powder <br />
1 1/2 tsp Mixed Spice <br />
Pinch of Salt<br />
115g Soft dark brown sugar<br />
2 Eggs <br />
100ml Milk <br />
6 tbsp Sunflower oil<br />
200g Luxury mincemeat (I would use nearer 300g)<br />
about 8-10 Glace cherries, chopped <br />
<br />
<u>To top</u><br />
<br />
1 tbsp Apricot jam<br />
Ready to roll white icing. <br />
<br />
Pre heat the oven to 200 deg C and line a 12 hole muffin tray with cases.<br />
Sift together the flour, baking powder, Mixed spice, and salt into a large bowl , stir in the sugar.<br />
<br />
Beat the eggs together and then beat in the milk and oil. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the liquid ingredients, mincemeat and cherries and stir until just combined. <br />
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Spoon the mixture into the cases and bake for around 20 minutes until well risen and golden brown. <br />
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Leave to cool on a wire rack.<br />
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To top, knead the icing until pliable and roll out, cut out 12 snowflake shapes, however I just cut circles. <br />
Warm the Apricot jam until runny and brush over the cakes, the top with the icing snowflakes.<br />
<br />
And that's it! The recipe does call to decorate with those little silver edible balls, however I cannot bear these, and why anyone would want to risk cracking their teeth on their rock hard shell I do not know, I did top a few of my cakes with half a cherry though as you can see: <br />
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Any way that's all from me today I hope you are all all having more success with your new years resolutions than I am. Bye for now, <br />
<br />
Cupcake Kris xxxcupcakegirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05315872773205025078noreply@blogger.com4