Hey guys, it has been a few busy days around here. Because of my exhibition, which is coming soon, it is auite hard to document my baking… :/
In these days full of [mental] action, I have been craving especially one thing: NUTELLA. The good thing about this stuff is its flexibility. Put it anywhere and it will be a hit (we are talking about sweets right here, remember). And if you want to share a chocolaty melty dessert with someone you like or you are alone and hungry or frustrated or both, I have an idea for you. Only with a few ingredients you can make one or two persons happy. And don’t feel guilty if one of these is you.
All you have to do is bake this tiny cake in a 10 cm (4´´) round pan, slice up some strawberries and whip up cream.
Then put nutella (as much as you like) onto the warm cake layer. Then place the strawberry slices on top.
Put on some cream. More strawberries.
2nd cake layer on top,some more cream, decoration, done. Takes all in all about 15 minutes and will make you happy for much longer.
Happiness Cake
makes about 2 servings (depending on your apetite :D)
60 g butter (1/2 stick)
50 g sugar (1/6 cup)
1 egg
75 g all purpose flour (2/3 cup)
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 pinch salt
Whisk together the flour baking powder and salt in a bowl. Set aside. Preheat oven to 180° C (350° F).
Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl until the mixture becomes light and fluffy. Add the egg and stir until fully and incorporated. Now add the dry ingredients and stir until the dough is smooth.
Transfer the mixture into an oiled pan and bake about 12 minutes or until a toothpicker comes out clean.
Cut the cake into two layery and put nutella on the hot bottom. Let it cool a little, then go on with strawberries and cream.
Then: dig in.
Hey guys. A lot has been going on these days, so it was quite tricky for me to document my baking recently… Hope you don’t mind!
THere has been the day of youth dedication ceremonies in town and I was involved with a baking contingent. As always I asked for wishes – and they said chocolate. Chocolate cupcakes, chocolate frosting. Not too heavy. I was so glad I could try a combination I had been waiting for so long: brownie cupcakes with nougat frosting. And I can tell you, the stuff turned out to be double chocolaty and double tasty.
Both components – the bater and the buttercream – have already introduced on this blog, but I guess it is easier for you to have them both on one page if you want to make these babies.
I advise you to put the cupcakes in the refridgerator for at least 2 hours after piping the frosting on top, because the cream needs some time to set and gets a better consistence after cooled down. And one more thing: plan enoutg time for making these, as the cream and the cakes mustn’t be warm anymore before put together.
Chocolate Chocolate Cupcakes
(makes about 2 dozen cupcakes)
300 g (3 sticks) butter
450 g (2 2/3 cup) sugar
3 tsp vanilla extract
6 eggs
125 g (1 1/8 cup) dark cocoa powder
180 g (1 1/2 cup) flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
found at my baking addiction
Preheat oven to 175°C (350°F). Melt the butter in a microwave. Combine with sugar. Add the eggs one at a time and stir in vanilla. Sift together all dry ingredients and stir them in. Line a muffin mold with cups and fill with dough up to 2/3. After 35 minutes you will have sweet, flat cupcakes, waiting for decoration. Let them cool completely.
20 g (2/3 oz.) corn starch
2 egg yolks
50 g (1/4 cup) sugar
300 ml (1 1/4 cup) milk
250 g (2 sticks) butter
100 g (3 oz.) nougat, melted
50 g (1 2/3 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate, melted
found at Chefkoch.de
Mix 50 ml (5 tbsp.) of the milk with corn starch. Add egg yolks and sugar and mix well. Heat the remaining milk until it starts to boil. Slowly add the egg mixture and stir until the cream thickens.
Cream the butter in a seperate bowl. Incorporate in cream.
Melt nougat and chocolate over a water bath, then incorporate as well.
Chill at least for 1 1/2 hours in the refridgerator. Then pipe on top of the cucakes and decorate. Cool the cupcakes for two more hours.
Last week I accepted a special challenge. A fondant cake. OMFG, I was so frightened. Fondant scares me. It won’t make the things I want it to, have not the right colour, be sticky, dry… I have a kind of phobia.
But to make the parents of a school mate happy, I tried to ignore these fears and started the project. Her parents are great formula 1 fans, this means the shape of the cake should be the most attracting thing – a racing car. Wew, this was really a challange. With a good basic chocolate cake I always use and a really yummy choc buttercream, it was possible to make a good shape. Then everything covered and decorated.
It would be quite tricky to explain how I exactly prepared the car as I have no pictures of the process, but I will give you the recipe of the chocolate buttercream that is not to be missed. It is pretty easy to make and has a strong nutty note that tastes good with chocolate cake. Mhhh…
Chocolate Buttercream
20 g (2/3 oz.) corn starch
2 egg yolks
50 g (1/4 cup) sugar
300 ml (1 1/4 cup) milk
250 g (2 sticks) butter
100 g (3 oz.) nougat, melted
50 g (1 2/3 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate, melted
Mix 50 ml (5 tbsp.) of the milk with corn starch. Add egg yolks and sugar and mix well. Heat the remaining milk until it starts to boil. Slowly add the egg mixture and stir until the cream thickens.
Cream the butter in a seperate bowl. Incorporate in cream.
Melt nougat and chocolate over a water bath, then incorporate as well.
Use for decoration, cake pops and much more :)
Recipe adapted from Chefkoch.de