Friday, June 4, 2010

Chocolate modeling paste and making butterflies


Cupcake decorated with Chocolate modeling paste butterflies and Italian Meringue Buttercream

I thought I would show you one of my favourite decorating mediums Chocolate modeling paste.

It tastes just like chocolate but is pliable and easily molded into shapes, in fact sometimes it is called chocolate plastic, (but that just doesn't sound very enticing does it).

It's great, you can make ribbons, roses and like above cute little butterflies. It can be used to cover whole cakes. It's delicious and best of all it's easy to make.

Chocolate Modeling paste recipe

Take 454 g (1 pound) of dark chocolate and 1 cup (240ml) of glucose or corn syrup. Melt the chocolate gently in short bursts in the microwave, warm up the syrup and mix together, not too much or it will start to separate and get oily.

Yup - that's it, too easy.

I halved the recipe and it worked out fine, you can also use milk or white chocolate (just use 680g or 1.5 pounds to 240ml/1 cup syrup ratio for white choc). Leave it to set and it should look like this and be very pliable.


Here are some pics of how I made the butterflies. I feel a bit embarrassed showing you, because it's soo easy.
The butterfly cutters I used are PME butterfly plunger cutters (you can easily find them via google or ebay). If you have trouble finding them email me I'll send you where I got mine from.


See how they plunge in and out.


So roll out the chocolate modeling paste to the thickness you require. Only use small batches as it dries out quickly. One press down will cut out the shape,  then without lifting the cutter up plunge down the middle to indent the pattern on the cut shape. See embarrassingly easy.


If you want butterflies with flat wings just leave them to set on parchment paper. If you want folded wings, once they are cut out  pop them onto some parchment paper folded into a V and then onto cardboard also folded to a V.


Mmmmm - fly into my mouth little butterflies. This gorgeous dress and hair clip are from Tea Princess, available from LaToriana.  If you have little girls you have to check out the latest winter range.

LaToriana also carries the gorgeous Robert Gordon cupcake papers shown in the pic above. Or if your in the US you can get them from Bake it Pretty

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

I'm making Whoopie - Pies that is




Whoopie Pies - are these the next big thing? They have been around for a while, but they seem to be gaining some popularity at the moment.

Pink vanilla raspberry, omit choc chips add colour and pop raspberry extract in the frosting.

They look a bit like a big macaron and have a lot of frosting like a cupcake - intrigued yet?

Pretty much a whoopie pie is in between a cake batter and cookie dough baked on a cookie tray, and then sandwiched together with a good dollop of frosting/filling.


Have I sold you yet? Well they are easy to make, delicious and you can make them in so many different combinations your sure to find one you love.

Whoopie pies cookbook by Sarah Billingsley and Amy Treadwell 


I have a whole cookbook just dedicated to these delightful treats.

To start off showing you the delights of Whoopie Pie I have made a chocolate chip version, with a traditional frosting center using crisco and marshmallow fluff. Now if you live in Australia you may have trouble finding these ingredients so check out the notes at the bottom.

Now this here is an example of not following the recipe exactly again. I made my whoopies a little too big, probably about double the size and I think mine are just a tad too browned. But still super delicious.

Also the recipe said it would make 48, and I only ended up with 19 doubles (38 singles) and that's even before I ate a few warm unfilled ones
.
Whoopie Pie and milk - Mmmmm

Oh well will just have to make the sacrifice and try again in a couple of days.

Ok on to the recipe, these are adapted from Whoopie Pies by Sarah Billingsley and Amy Treadwell

Chocolate Chip Whoopie Pies

2 1/4 cups plain (all purpose) flour                                   
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
56g (2 oz) unsalted butter at room temperature
56g (2 oz) vegetable shortening (if not available use butter * see below on where to find crisco in Australia)
1/2 cup granulate sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 Tbsp milk (US - 2 Tbsp)
1 tsp bicarb soda (baking soda)
1 tsp white vinegar
1 cup choc chips, mini if available

Preheat oven to 190 C (375 F). Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift together flour, baking powder and salt.
In a mixer bowl beat butter, shortening and both sugars until light and creamy. Approx 3 mins.


Beat together sugars, shortening and butter until fluffy

Add eggs and buttermilk and beat until combined. (I think my milk was not warm enough and mine did not completely combine so I moved onto the next step after a bit of mixing without detriment to the finished product)

Combine milk, baking soda and vinegar and mix. Add to the batter along with the flour mixture and beat on low until combined. Add the vanilla and beat on medium for approx 2 mins until completely combined.

Stir in choc chips with a spatula or wooden spoon until just incorporated.


Fold in the chop chips

Using a spoon drop about  3 tsp (US 1 tbsp) of batter onto one of the prepared baking sheets, continue leaving about 2 inch of space.

Bake 1 sheet at a time for appox 10 mins until the cakes just begin to brown. Let cool for at least 5 mins before transferring to wire rack to cool.


'Classic" marshmallow filling
(I only made half of the recipe listed below and had just enough to fill my whoopies)
1 1/2 cups Marshmallow Fluff (see pic below)
1 1/4 cups vegetable shortening (like crisco see pic below)
1 cup icing (confectioner's) sugar
3 tsp (US - 1 tbsp) vanilla extract

In a stand mixer beat together marshmallow fluff and shortening at medium speed until the mixture is smooth and fluffy.

Reduce to low speed and mix in sugar and vanilla, beat until well mixed, scrape down as required. Increase speed to medium high and mix until fluffy approx 3 mins.


To assemble pip or spread filling onto one whoopie cake and top with another cake.


Store in a single layer in a air tight container for up to 3 days. If you pile them on top of each other they will stick together.


* Where to find Crisco, Marshmallow Fluff and other US ingredients in Australia

Sometimes I have been lucky enough to find marshmallow fluff at coles in the same section as peanut butter, nutella and vegemite. But if your not so lucky here is a link to USA Foods where I get stuff from, they call it marshmallow creme there. If you live in Australia and crave US foods this is your link to an oasis of baking goods, cereals, sodas and chocolate bars.

In Brisbane Australia, Chocolate Boulevard in the Myer Center also has a wide range of US foods.

If your still having trouble finding crisco/shortening my local kitchenware store sells shortening in their cake decorating section, so you might try someplace like that. It is not crisco but it's a similar product.

As an alternative to the traditional filling, the lovely  Lorraine at Not Quite Nigella did a post on Whoopie's a couple of months ago and had a link to this easy version of filling at Taste.com.au

Or stay tuned to the blog I will be trying out a few different versions of whoopie pies and fillings over the next few weeks

Sunday, May 30, 2010

♥ ♥ ♥ Heart cookie cupcake toppers ♥ ♥ ♥ - oh I ♥ them

Wheee look at these super gorgeous cupcake wrappers I got from The Cupcake Wrapper Co


Aren't they just the sweetest thing - Love Birds - Awwhhhhh.

Although I have another project planned with these super cute wrappers. I just had to do something with them straight away so I made these little heart cookie cupcake toppers with some cookie dough I had left in the freezer from the lollipop cookies (click here for cookie recipe)



 Turns out they were too delicious to resist.


"Help, no not me, eat my delicious friend next to me .... "


"Aaaargh no I'm too buttery, I'm no good for you, stop it."

Oooops


I shaped the uncoloured dough into a long heart shaped log by rolling a log, squashing out a point for the bottom of the heart and using a knife to indent the top and then wrapped around the pink


Pop the dough back into the fridge to cool and after at least an hour take out and slice to make cute little cookies.



Pop a long food safe pick into the bottom of the cookie and bake at 165 C (330 F) for approx 10 mins or until cooked.

Heart cookie cupcake toppers, decorative and edible.

♥  ♥  ♥

Yum.

Friday, May 28, 2010

and the winner is.......FROSTING!!!!!


Just a quick update posting.

A couple of weeks back we had a taste off between old fashioned frosting and Italian meringue buttercream and it seems like old fashioned frosting was the winner.

That's right, that simple go to recipe of sugar, butter, milk and vanilla won out over 40 minutes of boiling sugar syrups, mixing meringue and kitchenaid whipping.

Although it did only just win and most people said they would be happy with both. Some really disliked the frosting as too sweet, and others disliked the buttercream as too creamy. I guess as with most things its a matter of taste.



So if you like sweet and sugary go for the frosting. However if you like fluffy, creamy frosting which pipes beautifully I recommend the buttercream.(the roses on both cakes were buttercream as the frosting just would not hold up to piping)

BIG thank you to all the testers who tasted and got back to me.

Thursday, May 27, 2010

May 2010 Daring Bakers Challenge - Piece Montee or Croquembouche


For a few years I have noticed on a number of the food blogs I follow the Daring Bakers. They set a challenge each month and the members all make the same item, with significantly varing and wonderful results to post on their blogs.

How wonderful I thought to myself, this will make me grow as baker and challenge me to try things I would never think of. I am a Daring Baker I decided to myself, actually a long time ago and last month I finally signed up.

Except I was pretty busy this month and thought I signed up after the cutoff date and wouldn't have to start until next month........Eeeek I was wrong!!!

Oh well I guess it's called a challenge for a reason.

The May 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Cat of Little Miss Cupcake. Cat challenged everyone to make a piece montée, or croquembouche, based on recipes from Peter Kump’s Baking School in Manhattan and Nick Malgieri.


The recipe provided by Little Miss Cupcake was easy to follow and worked well, so the actual baking of the puffs and making of the cream was relatively easy.


So my first try I flavoured the cream with rosewater and it was a pretty delicious flavor combination.

I had just baked a batch of macarons and decided to try and include them in the decorations so here is my first attempt play around. I used chocolate instead of toffee as I had a 20 month old holding onto my legs during the construction stage and didn't feel comfortable with all that hot sugar flying around.


So here are a couple of variations on my first attempt.


See I made a funny little disk out of the choux pastry to help support it as I didn't want to use the toffee.

Then I decided to get serious and use toffee. Not a big fan of toffee these days, although as a kid I can remember my mum making it for fair sweet stalls at the school and I loved it then.

My dislike of the toffee might have something to do with the fact that I had croquembouche for my wedding cake and I still remember now trying to get one of those hard toffee balls out of the cake. 

I stuck the puffs together using just a little toffee on the bottom of each. I was making some sugar 'Halos' for another project which I posted a couple of days ago so I made some larger ones to pop over the top of this project. I also attempted spun sugar which actually worked but I thought it looked a bit messy when applied.


I took a couple of quick photos outside, it was still only 6ish in the morning and it's coming into winter here so still not much light. All was going pretty good. I planned to take the real photos after school drop off.

Then disaster in the form of my 21 month old son. He ate the top before I got any great shots
.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh well, he did really enjoy it.

Overall the project was a bit of fun, and something I wouldn't have chosen to do myself. The choux pastry and cream are reasonably easy to make and taste great on their own or with a chocolate sauce. I don't like toffee so I wouldn't go to the trouble to built a structure again unless it was for a specific reason, but it was a great challenge. Thanks Little Miss Cupcake :)

Vanilla Crème Patissiere 
 2 cup (450 ml.) whole milk
 4 Tbsp. cornstarch
200 g. sugar
2 large egg
 4 large egg yolks
 4 Tbsp. (60 g.) unsalted butter
1 Tsp. Vanilla
1 tsp Rosewater
Dissolve cornstarch in 1/2 cup of milk. Combine the remaining milk with the sugar in a saucepan; bring to boil; remove from heat.
Beat the whole egg, then the yolks into the cornstarch mixture. Pour 1/3 of boiling milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly so that the eggs do not begin to cook.
Return the remaining milk to boil. Pour in the hot egg mixture in a stream, continuing whisking.
Continue whisking (this is important – you do not want the eggs to solidify/cook) until the cream thickens and comes to a boil. Remove from heat and beat in the butter and vanilla and rosewater.

Pate a Choux (Yield: About 28)
¾ cup (175 ml.) water
6 Tbsp. (85 g.) unsalted butter
¼ Tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 cup (125 g.) all-purpose flour
4 large eggs

Pre-heat oven to 425◦F/220◦C degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Combine water, butter, salt and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and stir occasionally. At boil, remove from heat and sift in the flour, stirring to combine completely.

Return to heat and cook, stirring constantly until the batter dries slightly and begins to pull away from the sides of the pan.

Transfer to a bowl and stir with a wooden spoon 1 minute to cool slightly. Add 1 egg. The batter will appear loose and shiny.

As you stir, the batter will become dry-looking like lightly buttered mashed potatoes. It is at this point that you will add in the next egg. Repeat until you have incorporated all the eggs.
Piping:
Transfer batter to a pastry bag fitted with a large open tip (I piped directly from the bag opening without a tip). Pipe choux about 1 inch-part in the baking sheets. Choux should be about 1 inch high about 1 inch wide.
Using a clean finger dipped in hot water, gently press down on any tips that have formed on the top of choux when piping. You want them to retain their ball shape, but be smoothly curved on top.
Bake the choux at 425◦F/220◦C degrees until well-puffed and turning lightly golden in color, about 10 minutes.Lower the temperature to 350◦F/180◦C degrees and continue baking until well-colored and dry, about 20 minutes more. Remove to a rack and cool.
Filling:
When you are ready to assemble your piece montée, using a plain pastry tip, pierce the bottom of each choux. Fill the choux with pastry cream using either the same tip or a star tip, and place on a paper-lined sheet. Choux can be refrigerated briefly at this point while you make your glaze.

Toffee for Halos
Instructions for the toffee I used are in my Halo Cupcakes post click here for the link

 Assembly

Group the puffs and do a trial run at arranging them, use the larger puffs at the bottom. Once are happy with how you will be arranging the puffs, pop the bottoms into the toffee and working quickly stack the puffs. Decorate with spun toffee, halo's or ribbon and flowers.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Halo Effect Cupcakes - Inspired by MissusT fanfic

I have a dirrrty little secret that I'm about to share. I read fanfiction.



Ok, I don't just read Fanfic its a mild addiction. Not just any fanfic mind you it has be to be good, based on the Sookie Stackhouse novels and include Sookie and Eric.

What, you've never heard of Fanfic or Sookie Stackhouse. Well before Christmas neither had I and then my life was turned about. I watched TrueBlood, a HBO series based on 'The Southern Vampire Mysteries" and I loved it. I loved the show, I loved the books, I loved the characters (well maybe not Bill).


Then I found a link to Fanfiction and my life was changed. Instead of waiting a year for a new book to be released there were hundreds of stories that fans who are also really talented authors have written based on the characters in these books. It's free, it's sometimes a bit raunchy and I really enjoy it.


And just before I lose some of you I'll just say 'Twilight". That's right Bella and Edward updated on a regular basis and with story lines you could never imagine. Fanfic actually has stacks of different categories so your fav TV show no doubt has a stack of stories just waiting for you to read.


The very talented MissusT has written a fanfic called Halo Effect which features a food blogger as the main character. Which is something I have been thinking about doing for a number of years.

I thought it was inspiring how the writers on fanfic spend their time writing for the enjoyment of others for little more than the joy of knowing that other people have read and enjoyed their work enough to provide reviews. So this idea, along with a couple of other things that clicked together is the reason I am here typing my own blog.

Here is the link to MissusT's Halo effect, which will link you thru to the world of Fanfic. But I'm warning you it can be highly addictive.

Lemon Chiffon Halo Effect Cupcake
Moist lemon chiffon cupcake topped by a fluffy meringue, a sugary halo finished with a rich surprise filling

Lemon Chiffon cake
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup macadamia oil (use canola if macadamia not available)
4 large eggs, separated
1 1/2 tsp grated lemon zest
1/4 cup less 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp cream of tartar

Preheat oven to 160 C (325 F).

Sift cake flour, 3/4 cup sugar, baking powder and salt into large bowl. Make a well in the center and add oil, egg yolks, zest, juice, water and vanilla. Mix on medium speed about 3 mins or until mixture is smooth and thick. Scrape down sides as required.


In another large bowl with clean beaters mix egg whites and cream of tartar until whites are foamy and tartar dissolves, continue beating on high speed until the egg whites look shiny and smooth to approx soft peak stage. Slowly beat in the remaining 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tbsp at a time until sugar is dissolved.

Stir around 1/3 of the egg white mixture into the yolk batter and then add the remaining egg white mixture carefully folding until no white streaks remain.


Transfer into a muffin tin with no liners, filling each hole to the top and bake 35 mins until the tops are golden and a tester inserted comes out dry.

Allow to cool completely and remove by using a small knife to loosen the edges and then using your fingers to gently rock them back and forth to release as required.

Seven minute frosting

1 1/4 cups sugar
1/3 cup water
3 large egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1tsp vanilla extract

Bring the bottom of a double boiler to simmer.
Put sugar, water, egg whites and cream of tartar in the top of a double boiler and beat with a mixer on high speed until white and foamy approx 1 min. Put double boiler on top of the simmering water and beat egg mixture at high speed for 7 minutes. Remove from heat and mix in vanilla immediately.

Frosting must be used straight away.

Optional Chocolate filling

I used left over chocolate filling from my walnut cookies click here for recipe



Sugar Halo's
227 gram (1/2 pound) granulated sugar
116 ml (4 liquid oz) water
43gram (1 1/2 oz) glucose

Bring sugar and water to boil, add glucose and cook to a light caramel. Quickly plunge bottom of pan in cold water to stop cooking process. Spray metal cookie sheets lightly with oil.

Using a spoon, make halo shapes onto the metal cookie sheets.

Allow to cool, remove from sheets carefully just prior to using.


Assembly
Place a small ball of chocolate filling into center of cupcake. Top with seven minute frosting, using a knife to make swirly peaks. Place halo on top of cupcake just before serving.


Verdict - this cake was really yummy,  there was a little to much frosting for my tastes, which is easily fixed. But the fluffy frosting worked well with the lemon cake. For an easier and just as delicious version leave out the choc filling and the halo's.

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Walnut Cookies


I have a confession, I have an obsession with molds and shaped cake tins. My house is full of them, cute bear cake tins, rose bundt tins, cameo molds...... The list is endless, and even though I only use some of them once I just can not stop myself.

So this here story is about some walnut cookie molds I bought. How cute is it, really I had no choice I had to get it. They are from house on the hill who make the most amazing Springerle and Speculaas Cookie Molds as well as stacks of other baking tools. I go into the online store and I'm lost for hours, sigh.......

So anyway, when I bought the mold it came with some recipes including edible peanut and chocolate playdoh, yum. But today I am sharing a recipe inspired by Martha Stewart Living whom actually introduced me to house on the hill. Note the cookie is very dense as it has to be to hold the shape during baking, so I find it is best to pull the 2 halves apart when eating.
 


The molds are a bit fiddly and until you work out the technique to gently pull the dough out you will be cursing.


Walnut cookies (makes around 25 sandwich cookies)

Cookie dough
2 1/2 cups plain (all purpose) flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
170 gram (6 ounces or 1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
85 gram (3 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla

For mold - Icing (confectioners) sugar for dusting

1. Sift flour, salt and cinnamon into a bowl.

2. Beat butter, cream cheese and both sugars on medium until fluffy, about 2 mins. Beat in yolk and vanilla. Add flour mixture and beat until just combined. Form dough into disk (about 3cm / 1 inch thick) wrap in plastic and refrigerate 1 hour.

3 Dust walnut mold generously with icing (confectioners) sugar. Cut a piece of dough about the size of the mold and press in carefully with fingers working from center.

Gently pull the dough out of the mold with your fingertips and pop onto a baking tray lined with baking paper.



Trim the edges of the walnut cookie with a knife if required. Repeat with remaining dough spacing cookies approx 3cm (i inch) apart. Clean mold as required during this process and add dust with more sugar. Freeze cookies at least 1 hour until very firm.


4. preheat over to 160 C (325 F) and bake until set around 25 - 30 mins. Cool on wire racks and sandwich together 2 cookies with approx 1 tsp filling.

Chocolate filling
180 gram dark chocolate (6 oz. bittersweet chocolate), coarsely chopped
60 gram (2 ounce - 1/4 cup) unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

Melt the chocolate and butter in the microwave on medium low for 1 minute. Stir. Microwave in bursts of 30 seconds, stirring in between till chocolate is melted and smooth. Set aside and cool, stirring occasionally, until cool and slightly thickened.