Exploding Hearts Cake Takes on a Moo Cow

This was a second request for the exploding hearts cake for a baby shower, and this time the mummy-to-be requested a little cow to take centre stage. Boyish and cute in blue, I love the little moo cow surrounded by exploding hearts.

A very big 12 inch chocolate mud cake with chocolate ganache. What a great way to celebrate an impending birth!

 I have been a little absent from my blog the last few weeks. What can I say but sometimes life can get a bit busy. I am in the middle of a little planning for my wedding with Save The Date cards and choosing accommodation my current focus. So far the planning has been great, and I am really enjoying finding inspiration photos and ideas all over the internet. I have however not been absent from baking in this time, and I have lots of photos and ideas to share over the next few weeks.

A Black and White Affair

 Little nephews and nieces are just the cutest and have the inate ability to make you smile on the inside. Plus, you can hand them back when they cry or need a nappy change. Perfect.

After a busy time recently changing jobs and doing some cake decorating, it is nice to take some time out to go on holiday to visit family. Travelling down to the south end of the country also involves a slight change of weather and I must admit I’m quite enjoying the cooler temperatures and rainy skies for a few days. This allows for the wearing of wintery outfits and warming up in front of the fire in the evenings.  Hmmm one sunny day wouldn’t go astray.

 Last weekend whilst still in the North, I created a black and white themed 50^th birthday cake for an ex work colleage.  I baked a 3 layer devil’s food chocolate cake, then filled and frosted it with a chocolate buttercream. After letting it firm up overnight, I covered it with white fondant, black stripes, white lid and silver ribbon and bow. I decorated with a hand painted gift tag (paint is made by mixing black powder colour with clear alcohol such as vodka) and a white fondant rose made using the Jem easy rose cutters. Roses are so pretty and these cutters make them easy peasy. The final finishing touch was a few clusters of shimmering pearls and a string of pearls to "attach" the gift tag.

The book Planet Cake by Paris Cutler has step by step instructions for a present box cake (I did mine a little differently), and for making a big fondant bow. Planet Cake have also made this great video on making a bow.

Plum and Almond Cupcakes with Heavenly White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

What does one do when faced with the dreaded phrase "I don't like chocolate"? Well, in short, you whip them up these amazing plum and almond cupcakes and hope like hell that they don't mind white chocolate in frosting!

I LOVE fruit in cupcakes.

Just had to have that sentence stand alone as it deserves it. Fruit (and vegies for that matter), give cakes a lovely moist texture and great flavour. Banana, carrot, pineapple, berries, pears and plums all make fantastic cakes. These cupcakes are simply divine as they are moist and tasty but not too sweet thanks to the cream cheese in the frosting. They make for pretty little morning or afternoon tea cakes, and dainty minis would be perfect for a do it yourself high tea. Try them, they are quick and easy to whip up and I have not had a single person not like them as yet.

Plum and Almond Cupcakes

Yield: 18 regular cupcakes or 30+ mini cupcakes

Source: Cupcakes, a fine selection of sweet treats

185g (1½ cups) self-raising flour

1½ tsp ground cinnamon

100g unsalted butter, melted

230g (1 cup) soft brown sugar

3 eggs, lightly beaten

50g (⅓ cup) blanched almonds, finely chopped

825g tin stoned plums in natural juice, drained and chopped

1.   Preheat oven to 160°C. Line 18 muffin holes with paper cases (more if making minis).

2.   Sift the flour and cinnamon together in a bowl. Add the butter, sugar, eggs, almonds and plums and mix with electric beaters until combined.

3.   Spoon mixture evenly among the cases and bake for approximately 15 minutes, or until inserted skewer comes out clean (check minis after 10 minutes, then recheck every 2 minutes until done).

White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

Source: Piece of Cake

200g white chocolate, chopped

250g package cream cheese

1.   Slowly melt the white chocolate either in the microwave for 30 second intervals, stirring after each, or over a double boiler. Allow to cool to almost room temperature.

2.   Beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer for a minute until smooth and creamy. Beat in the melted white chocolate until smooth, then colour as desired.

To decorate the cupcakes as I have, use a small offset spatula to spread some frosting onto the cupcake, then scrape off the excess to leave it flat with the top of the cases. Transfer the rest of the frosting to a piping bag with Wilton 2D tip (or a star tip) and pipe a small "ruffle" holding the piping bag straight and only moving upwards slightly whilst piping (hope this explanation makes sense!). Finish off with a sprinkle of white non-pareils and if you feel like it a couple of edible flowers, either bought or made from fondant with a cutter.

 
Last time I made these I could not find the 825g tin plums at the supermarket. Instead they had a 1kg container of plums that still contained the stones. I simply used approximately 80% of the plums and removed the stones with my hands.

Don't be fooled by how ugly the cupcakes look once they're baked, they taste great. You just need to cover up the shrivelled prune look with delectable pink tinted cream cheese frosting to make them pretty again. The frosting above is what I have started using as it has a firmer consistency and can be piped onto the cupcake. The frosting below is the original frosting from the recipe. It has a softer consistency and requires the paper case to hold it in. Both are delicious recipes and have the necessary cream cheese to take the cupcake from good to Amazing!

White Chocolate Cream Icing

200g white chocolate, chopped

125ml (½ cup) pouring cream

200g cream cheese, softened

40g (⅓ cup) icing sugar, sifted

Combine the chocolate and cream in a small saucepan and stir over low heat until the chocolate has melted. Place the chocolate mixture, cream cheese and icing sugar in a bowl and beat with electric beaters until smooth. Cover bowl and refrigerate for 2 minutes, or until slightly firm. Beat mixture again for a few seconds until smooth. Spread frosting over each cake and decorate as desired.

                                                          Enjoy!

The Last of the Easter Bunny Cupcakes

 

Inspired by the fabulous Bella Cupcakes I created these little cakes today to celebrate Easter. The cupcakes were leftovers from a trial run of a marble mudcake recipe so some are marble and some are white chocolate mudcake. I wanted to try to recreate the cuteness of my inspiration with a white, pink and purple colour scheme.

I was also inspired the equally creative Bakerella to try her cute little chick cake pops. These did not go as well as I substituted white chocolate for candy melts as I didn't have any. The white chocolate did not colour very well, neither does it go on very smooth. It's still a little bit of cuteness to brighten up the day.

The cupcakes made a great centrepiece for our family Easter BBQ tonight, however I am still far too full to even attempt to eat these just yet. Lucky they are mudcake and can wait another day or two until I find room or someone who wants to share. So with the Easter bunny been and gone, I still have the last of the Easter bunny cupcakes to enjoy...Happy Easter!

The Best Homemade Easter Hot Cross Buns

Just brought these little bites of joy out of the oven a couple of hours ago. The glaze was quickly brushed over the top, the buns pulled apart and a generous swipe of butter applied while the steam continued to escape. I hurriedly took a couple of snaps before sinking my teeth into what is an amazingly satisfying hot cross bun. Once that was devoured I made up another for myself, this time a chocolate variation. Both were delicious with a warm, soft centre and a slightly crunchy outer. My personal pick of the two however will have to go to my version of the traditional Easter hot cross bun.

I have made a few Easter buns over the years, and bought too many to count. I like to enjoy them either fresh or if a day or two old they are equally delicious toasted and always served with butter. Breakfast, lunch, morning tea, afternoon tea or dessert - the only meal I haven't eaten one being dinner. This is adapted from a recipe found on taste.com.au, and with more than 60 reviews giving an overwhelmingly positive result, I had to try it (with some of my own changes of course). This recipe produces lovely soft buns, the result of using bakers flour with a higher protein and gluten content. I do believe these are the best homemade hot cross buns I have ever made or eaten, with an affirmative from my partner in crime who could be heard groaning whilst eating his first bite before declaring them the best he's ever eaten.

I made one batch and during the second kneading halved the dough and added 1 cup of sultanas to one half and approximately 1 cup of white and milk chocolate chips into the other. Once I had divided up the dough into 16 buns, I popped half of them onto a tray wrapped in a freezer bag and froze them so I can thaw them out Easter Sunday morning and eat freshly baked buns a second time. I'll let you know if they turn out exactly the same or not.

The Best Homemade Easter Hot Cross Buns

adapted from Taste.com.au

allow 2-3 hours including rising time

1½ cups (375ml) lukewarm milk (not hot!)

2 tsp (7g/1sachet) dried yeast

¼ cup (55g) caster sugar

60g butter, melted

1 egg, lightly beaten

4 cups (600g) plain 00 bakers flour

6g bread improver (not essential)

1 tsp salt

1½ Tbsp mixed spice (I know it's a lot, but trust me it makes them oh so tasty)

2 tsp ground cinnamon

2 cups sultanas

White Crosses

75g plain flour

⅓ cup (80ml) cold water

Glaze

apricot jam

1.   Combine the milk, yeast and 1 Tbsp of sugar in a small bowl. Set aside in a warm, draught-free place for 10 minutes or until frothy.

2.   Add the melted butter and lightly beaten egg to the milk mixture and whisk to combine. Combine the flour, bread improver (optional) salt, mixed spice, cinnamon and remaining sugar in a large bowl. Add the sultanas and stir to combine. Make a well in the centre. Pour in the milk mixture and use a wooden spoon to stir until just combined, then use your hands to bring the dough together.

3.   Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10-15 minutes or until smooth and elastic (alternately if you own a mixer with a dough hook, combine the ingredients and knead the dough in the mixer for 10 minutes using the dough hook, then knead by hand for a couple of minutes). Place the dough in a bowl and cover with a damp tea towel and place in a warm, draught-free place for 1 hour or until dough doubles in size.

4.   Preheat oven to 200°C. Grease a 25cm square or 20x30cm rectangular dish. Punch the dough down with your fist. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 2-3 minutes or until dough is smooth and elastic. Divide dough into 16 even pieces and shape each portion into a ball. Arrange dough portions, side by side, in the prepared dish (buns should be just touching but not squished in). Set aside in a warm, draught-free place for 30 minutes or until dough has risen 2cm.

5.   Meanwhile, mix the white crosses flour and water together in a small bowl until a smooth paste forms. Place in a small plastic bag and snip off the end. Pipe a continuous line down the centre of each row of buns, lengthways and widthways, to form crosses. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 180°C and bake for a further 10 minutes or until golden and cooked through (buns are ready when they sound hollow when tapped).

6.   Turn onto a wire rack. Melt the jam in a saucepan over the stove or a dish in the microwave and brush over the buns to glaze. Serve warm with butter, or toasted.

Chocolate Hot Cross Buns: this variation can be made by replacing the sultanas with 1½-2 cups of whatever mix of white, milk or dark chocolate chips you like. Do not add the chocolate until the second kneading, otherwise the chocolate will soften and melt into the dough during the first kneading.

Bakers flour, strong flour, 00 flour (available in most supermarkets) has a higher protein and gluten content which is the key to these soft buns. Regular flour may be used as a substitute, but will result in a slightly different texture.

Next time I bake these, the only change I will make is to omit the glaze as I found it too sticky and its main purpose for looks. Please keep in mind homemade buns contain no preservatives and as such are best eaten fresh on the day of baking or enjoyed warmed in the microwave or toasted within 3 days. I cannot wait to bake the frozen buns on Easter Sunday to eat hot from the oven.

                                      Happy Easter and Enjoy!