I raise a Baileys cupcake to you all

 

2011 has been quite the year for me.

In February I got a Kitchenaid, and love it as much today as I did the day I brought it home squealing all the way from Chiswick to New Cross. I still often stand in the Kitchen stroking it in a way that isn't particularly normal for a girl and a stand mixer.

In March left a job that I for some time despised with a rousing chorus of so long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, adieu, adieu, adieu, to yieu and yieu and yieu. And yes I did sing it LOUDLY as I was leaving. Lots of Jägermeister may have been involved.

Then in April I buggered off to Madrid on a whim to see Manowar, visit twin baby pandas and eat cupcakes.

Then I started working in baking - first in a cafe in Brixton where I covered the bakery for two days a week while the other girl had time off. It was great while it lasted but alas I couldn't survive on just 5 or so hours of work a week and thankfully one of my favourite bakers in London was hiring and I was lucky enough to get the job. This led to months of baking, and learning, with someone I really admired. It also led to me getting more work with another fab baker. I can honestly say the time with these two has been the best time I've had at work in many years. I've learned lots - including NOT to turn a Kenwood to pulse just after adding the red colouring to red velvet batter or to turn it to pulse while only cream cheese is in the bowl. You will not look pretty afterwards. Mainly, don't pulse anything ever. And check the baking powder, bicarb each and every time - then recheck. Oh and don't pick up cake tins straight out of the oven with bare hands. This hurts. Lots.

I'm hoping 2012 leads to lots more baking and lots more good cake! Oh and can we hope that it's the year when some crapcake purveyors stop peddling their old tasteless poor excuses for cake please?

That shall be I Heart Cupcakes call for 2012:

What do we want?

Fresh n tasty cake!

When do we want it? 

NOW! please *  

Happy New Year everyone - may all your cupcake wishes for 2012 come true. 

Cheers, and thanks to everyone who continues to visit my blog!


* remember manners cost nothing

A cupcake 'Pick me Up'

I've known for a few days that we were picking up Cupcake yesterday and I thought long and hard about what to make for her debut. I thought I'd decided on the Heart Cupcakes I'd seen on Bake it in A Cake, but then, as women are prone to do, I changed my mind. Ingredients had to be sourced and bought but it was all worth it, as I was keen to make some cakes I'd never made before.

The tiramisu cupcake includes four of my favourite things in the world; cake, coffee, booze and a bit of chocolate. How could it fail to be perfect?

I used the recipe from the Love Bakery cookbook (I know them again - but I love this book) and of course I used Cupcake to mix it all. I thought I may have over mixed as the cakes felt a little firm, but then when I poured over the syrup of Monmouth filter coffee, sugar and lashings of Marsala they soon softened up.

The cupcakes are frosted with a marscapone frosting - which is marscapone cheese, a very small amount of icing sugar and whipped double cream mixed together. I had to get out my trusty old Dualit mixer to whip the cream while Cupcake mixed the icing sugar and marscapone - I hope she wasn't too put out.

The frosting was then piped onto the booze and coffee soaked cupcakes, topped with a cloud of Green and Blacks cocoa powder and some shavings of Green and Blacks 85% chocolate. Divine.

So how did they taste you ask? Absolutely delicious. I couldn't have chosen better for Cupcake's first foray into baking. The only thing I'd do differently is soak the cakes more - I didn't use all the mixture as I thought it may drown the cakes too much, but I think it would have been fine. They cakes had a lovely boozy hit and the coffee was nice but not too overpowering - I used very strong coffee so thought it might be too much. The frosting is another to add to my list of favourite things - very light and airy - like eating a tasty cloud covered cupcake. We ate ours with a little splosh of Marsala over the top for an extra boozy kick!

Cupcake did us proud! She mixed everything beautifully and her little guard thing stopped the usual dust of icing sugar all over my kitchen. I think she can stay ;)

By the way there are a lot of different stories behind the origin of Tiramisu but my favourite is the account of the recipe's invention at an Italian brothel to provide an energy boost to exhausted clients - maybe I should be approaching the 666 Sauna down the road to see if they'd like to buy some boxes for their clientèle!

Happy Birthday dear I Heart Cupcakes...

So today is I Heart Cupcake's birthday. Three years ago today I started this blog, my first post being about some about some cupcakes Manny had bought me for Valentines from Lola's.

So if this was my blogs wedding anniversary traditional 3rd wedding anniversary gifts have a theme of leather, or if you're going contemporary, crystal. Someone once bought me a crystal decanter - why I'm not sure - can you decant Baileys or Jagermeister I asked. And meh to leather.  Instead I went for this....

Meet Cupcake - my brand new shiny baby pink KitchenAid!!!!!!!!!! Yep that's right after years of touching them in John Lewis to the point of nearly being asked to leave I finally have one to call my very own.

I can't really put into words how excited I am about my new baby but I can't stop touching her and smiling! I was like a kid let loose in the candy store today when we went to Chiswick to buy her. Everyone in the shop was super excited too when they saw her - she brings love to wherever she goes! As you can maybe tell,  I am chuffed to bits. My  grandparents bought me Cupcake as a late Christmas present, which makes it even more special as my grandmother is one of the main reasons I love baking so much. She taught me to make fairy cakes, butterfly cakes, millionaires shortbread and my favourite rude Scotch pancakes (they used to make me giggle) on her griddle which to this day I still call her girdle. I have yet to try a millionaires shortbread that beats my grans. Her great kitchen abilities have passed through our family, my lovely Auntie Kate, RIP, was a fantastic baker and we used to often spend holidays in the kitchen rustling up empire biscuits, tiffin and my favourite of hers - strawberry cream tarts! My mother is also an amazing baker, and cook. She works in a bakery in Scotland, but the stuff they sell doesn't even compare to my her home baked goods - her cakes were legendary with my friends when I was at school and even after I moved to London my best friend Julie used to pop in on the way home to collect some cakes from my mums goodie tin!

Cupcake will be christened tomorrow - I already have some fancy pants ingredients to make some fabulous cupcakes for her debut so look out for the blog post about them!

As it's my blog's birthday and I'm feeling so incredibly happy I have decided to do a bit of a giveaway. I have received a couple of silicone giant cupcake molds and if you leave a comment below before Friday 18th Feb you will be entered into a prize draw to win one. If you don't have a blog and you comment please leave a contact email so I can get in touch if you win.

The giveaway is available to UK readers only I'm afraid, but I promise to do a worldwide giveaway soon!

Thanks to everyone who continues to read and comment on my blog after all this time - and to email me as well! I've met some lovely people through my writing I Heart Cupcakes and have had some wonderful cupcakes in the three years -and my baking, and especially my piping, has come on leaps and bounds!

Now I'm off to look at my KitchenAid some more! And maybe stroke it!

Giveaway now closed - Winner chosen on Random.org was Abbie - congratulations!

Malty Malteser Cupcakes

A lovely moist malted cupcake covered in sinful chocolate frosting - a perfect little treat

My perfect little treat - can you hear it saying "Anne I want to come home with you" ... I can!

Maltesers have linked up with acclaimed chef Lorraine Pascale and My Dish in a fabulous competition where the top prizes are, the winning recipe will be sold for a day in Lorraine Pascale's bakery, Ella's Bakehouse in Covent Garden, and a shiny new red gorgeous KITCHENAID!!! I have been drooling over a Kitchenaid (even popping into shops to touch them occasionally) for some time so decided to enter the competition and have been baking up a storm in the kitchen recently with Malteser Cupcakes, and I have to say they came out a treat. Lovely and moist with a bit of crunch on the base (I added Maltesers into the batter), with lashings of frosting on top - a vanilla with Malteser "dust" covered in lashings of very chocolatey frosting -all topped off with a Malteser on top - of course!

The recipe for my entry is below, or you can find it on the MyDish site, but first some pics of my different attempts.

Vanilla frosting, with bits of Malteser "dust" mixed in

A lump of vanilla and chocolate frosting ice cream scooped onto the cupcake to look (kinda like) a Maltester)

Naked with a mixture of vanilla (with Malteser "dust" mixed in) and chocolate frostings

Just good old chocolate frosting with a Malteser on top (obviously)

This is the frosting for my final entry however - the vanilla/Malteser dust combo, covered in chocolate frosting.

A nice blob of vanilla frosting (mixed with the Malteser "dust") to form the inside of the Malteser style frosting

Then fully cover with lashings of yummy chocolate frosting and a Malteser

And voila! a Cute little Maltesers Cupcake

Recipe and baking instructions

Ingredients

Cupcake
180g self raising flour, sifted
100g dark brown sugar
120g golden caster sugar
55g ovaltine
110g unsalted butter, room temp
2 large eggs, free range
125ml milk (I use Semi Skimmed throughout)
½ teaspoon good quality vanilla (I use Vanilla Paste throughout)
1 tablespoon sour cream
135g Maltesers pack (I used 2 -one regular one white)

Chocolate Frosting
250g icing sugar, sifted
225g butter, room temp
150g dark chocolate (I used Green and Blacks 85%)
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Vanilla Frosting
125g icing sugar, sifted
40g unsalted butter, room temp
12ml milk
¼ teaspoon vanilla
6 Maltesers blitzed/crushed to a fine dust

Method
Preheat your oven to 160 fan (180c or gas mark 4) and line a cupcake/muffin tin with cupcake cases.

Cupcakes
In a large bowl cream together your butter and both sugars for about 5 minutes until well mixed and pale. Add your eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each egg.

In a separate bowl combine flour and ovaltine, and in small jug (easier for pouring!) combine your milk, sour cream and vanilla.

Add approx half of the flour mixture into the creamed butter and sugar and mix well. Then add half the wet ingredients, again mixing well. Repeat and then ensure all the ingredients are well combined. I beat by hand when adding the flour and wet ingredients but you could use a hand mixer if you prefer.

Using an ice cream scoop or a tablespoon place a scoop of the mixture into each cupcake case. Then add 2 Maltesers into each case (either regular or white - I used a mixture) and top with another scoop of cake mix.

Bake in the oven for approx 25 minutes. To check if they are cooked insert a skewer into the centre of the cakes - if it comes out clean they're done. Leave to rest in the tray for 5 minutes, then place on a wire rack to cool fully.

Once they are cool you are ready to frost the cupcakes. I used a mixture of both vanilla and chocolate to create a Maltesers effect, however you could use just one if you prefer (I've tested with all just vanilla, and just chocolate and both are very tasty).

Vanilla Frosting
Mix the icing sugar and butter in a bowl for approx 5 minutes until nice and fluffy. I tend to add a little bit of icing sugar at a time to minimise icing sugar dust clouds! Mix the milk and vanilla together and add a little at a time, whilst continuing to mix. Continue mixing until the frosting is light and fluffy (about 3-5mins).

Take approx 6 Maltesers and use a hand held blender/food processer to make Maltester dust and mix this into the vanilla frosting to make your Malteser frosting centre.

Chocolate Frosting
Melt the chocolate in a heatproof glass bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Or alternatively use your microwave. Leave to cool.

Beat together butter, milk, vanilla, and icing sugar till smooth. Again I add the icing sugar a bit at a time to minimise mess. This will take several minutes to achieve a smooth frosting. Add the cooled, melted chocolate and beat again for approx 5 minutes until thick and creamy.

To decorate
For the Maltesers effect I piped a small circle of vanilla onto each cupcake, and then surrounded it with piped chocolate frosting. Topping each cupcake with a Malteser to finish.

Please note: you could use just vanilla (if you do this double the vanilla frosting recipe as there is just enough to for a little amount on each cupcake in the quantity given), or chocolate frosting (the recipe is enough for 12 cupcakes). Obviously all taste better topped with a Malteser!

EAT, and ENJOY!!

Martha's Meringue Cloud Cupcakes

I bought this months edition of Martha Stewart's Living Magazine solely because I wanted the full size photograph of this cloud cupcake to frame and put up in my kitchen. It's one of the prettiest cupcakes I've ever seen (although as Martha says its not really a cupcake, its a meringue, but anyways lets not quibble over semantics);

Light as air, this ethereal dessert takes the cupcake to new heights. In fact, there's no cake here at all: Meringue tinted pink is baked in the familiar cups, split, and filled with raspberry curd, berries, and creme fraiche. Serve them to all who love sweets, and be ready for raves.

You can find a recipe and watch a video of Martha making these (complete with gorgeous Kitchenaid mixers (hint hint I'd like the blue one please!)) on her website.

Thanks to MarthaStewart.com for use of the photographs.