Christmas Pudding Truffles - A Christmas eve treat.

So last night I had a few friends round for a little Christmas party, Food was ate, secret Santa's were exchanged, Christmas songs were played and mulled wine was drunk, and I'm feeling a little delicate this morning (well, afternoon) But I'm happy as I had a lovely time and I'm feeling very festive.

Any way after all the savoury food was eaten I brought out all the sweet treats I had made and their was a lot of cake to be had! 

Of to the left in the little cases are my Christmas pudding truffles The original recipe is a Nigella one for her Christmas Puddini Bon Bons however I altered the recipe slightly omitting some things and using milk chocolate and Brandy and then coating my truffles in Chocolate.
Any way here's how they're made:

Christmas Pudding Truffles 

 125g Milk Chocolate, melted in a bowl over a pan of boiling water.
 350g leftover, or freshly cooked and cooled, Christmas pudding
 60ml Brandy
 1 tablespoon golden syrup

To decorate: 150g Milk Chocolate, melted
Icing sugar (or alternatively melted white chocolate)


First crumble the pudding into a bowl and pour over the brandy. once the Brandy has mostly soaked into the pudding blend together. Add the meted chocolate and syrup and mix together. Then the messy part is rolling the truffles, I found dusting my hands with a little icing sugar or using cling film to roll them helped.

Once all the truffles are rolled coat each one in melted chocolate and place on a tray covered in cling film and place in the fridge to set.

Once set the truffles can be decorated to look like mini Christmas puddings using a little icing sugar blended with water to a thick paste or using melted white chocolate and then to top i used a little coloured sugar paste or you can used chopped glace cherries and angelica.

And that's it! I will upload a better picture once I get hold of the photos from last night. 

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and new year. I'm off to play Santa and give some pressies out!

Merry Christmas

Cupcake Kris xxx

Christmas Pudding Ice Cream and lots of Christmas baking.

I can't believe I haven't posted in 2 weeks! Well actually I can as I have been so busy with Christmas preparations, present buying, wrapping, present making (mainly jewelry) and even though I haven't blogged there has been a lot of baking.

I've had a few orders for cupcakes and last Monday I had 3 orders for one day that included Chocolate orange cupcakes Special toffee cupcakes  (however this time I stirred a little Dulche de leche into the batter) and as it's nearly Christmas Christmas spice cupcakes with mini gingerbread men  and here they all are :

 I also finished my Christmas cake! I'm not very good at making models out of sugar paste and I don't have many cutters so I just had to work with what I had which was a mini holly cookie cutter, so I went with the holly and berries theme and here it is:

But that's not all! I am having a Christmas party tomorrow for a few close friends so I've been a busy bunny in the kitchen baking savoury treats, sausage rolls, pigs in blankets, bacon twists as well as many more. and lots and lots of sweet treats, more Christmas spice cupcakes, Gingerbread men, mince pies, Chocolate candy cane cupcakes a gingerbread house and Christmas pudding truffles (to be posted here Christmas eve) and also a great quick dessert idea I saw the other day in Christmas Pudding Ice Cream.

Christmas Pudding Ice Cream is a great way to use up any extra or left over Christmas pud or just to have as an alternative dessert. I can't wait to have a scoop with a hot mince pie.
It's a really quick and easy recipe that can be thrown together in 5 minutes and left in the freezer to set while you get on with other things. I saw the idea on television the other day and I can't for the life of me remember which show but it was an Anthony Worral Thompson idea. They used different Cherries to me but I already had Glace cherries in the cupboard so opted to use them. Any way here it is:

You can't really get the idea from the picture but I will take a better picture once I take it out the tub and serve.

I used the tub that the Christmas pudding came in to store the ice cream so depending on what size pudding you are using depends on the amount of ice cream you need. but it's all down to preference with the pudding and cherry to ice cream ratio

Any way you will need

approx 1/2 left over and cooled Christmas pudding, crumbled. 
Few big scoops of ice cream, I used about 400ml
approx 30 g glace cherries, chopped 

In a bowl simply blend together all ingredients until the cherries and pudding are evenly dispersed and the ice cream has turned to liquid, beat together.
Then simply line your left over pudding dish, or any other bowl with cling film and pour the mixture in and wrap the top in cling film (or a lid if you have one) before returning to the freezer to re-freeze the ice cream.

Once frozen lift out of the bowl using the cling film and serve. 

And that's it a really simple idea for anyone in need of a last minute fix for a alternative Christmas dessert.If you are using a whole Christmas pudding make sure to save the remains and you can make another quick dessert and perfect last minute gift in Christmas pudding truffles (coming soon)

Any way back to the kitchen for me! I'll be sure to take pictures of the rest of the treats I make for the party and post them before Christmas.

Bye for now and be good (Santa's watching)

Cupcake Kris xxx

Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes.

I am feeling very Christmassy today, I went out for turkey carvery yesterday with some lovely friend and today I have decorated my house, put my tree up and when I finish writing this I'm going to wrap a few presents. I'm definitely getting in the Christmas mood. I've already made 2 batches of mince pies (All of which have already been eaten).  

So last week I was asked to make 36 cupcakes for an Irish themed night at my friends work and it was a perfect opportunity to make a cake flavour I've been wanting to try for ages. So I made 18 Vanilla cupcakes with Green Vanilla frosting and 18 Chocolate Guinness cupcakes with cream cheese icing.

As I'd said I wanted to make chocolate Guinness cake for a long time now and they didn't disappoint They were really rich with a dense chocolaty taste and just the perfect hint of Guinness, and the frosting perfectly compliments them. Now I don't like Guinness so if that's what you thinking don't let that put you off this recipe as this has fast become my new favourite chocolate cake recipe, because of the rich indulgent flavours.

any way here they are:

 I apologise for the terrible photographs, I was in a rush.

Or just spread the icing on top like the top of a pint of Guinness.

Just look at the dark, dense colour of the cakes (I had to cut this in half, and subsequently eat for photo purposes, oh well haha)

Any way here's how they're made

Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes:

Makes about 24 (can be easily halved)

250ml Guinness
250g unsalted butter, cut into pieces
75g cocoa
400g caster sugar
142ml sour cream
2 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla extract
275g plain flour
2 ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

Preheat the oven to 180˚C.
Pour the Guinness into a large saucepan and add the butter; heat until the butter's melted, then whisk in the cocoa and sugar. Beat the sour cream with eggs and vanilla and then pour into the pan of buttery beer and finally whisk in the flour and bicarbonate of soda.

Pour the batter into a tin lined with cake cases ¾ of the way up and bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until risen and a skewer inserted comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tins for 20 minutes and then cool completely on a wire rack.

Once the cakes are completely cool ice with the cream cheese frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting: enough for 12 cakes

300g Icing Sugar
50g Unsalted butter, at room temperature
125g Cream cheese. 

Beat together the icing sugar and butter with an electric whisk and then beat in the cream cheese until smooth.

Ice the cakes as desired. I wanted to then top mine with a little green shamrock however I couldn't get hold of  a decent cutter in time.

And that's it! This week I am going to ice my Christmas cake and start on my list of other treat I plan to make for Christmas as well as fill a few cupcake orders I have.

Until next time

Cupcake Kris xxx

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