Things to buy for Chocolate Truffle cake

Ingredients List:

Ingredients

Cake:

Maida/ Flour-1 cup
Baking Powder-1/2 tsp
Baking Soda-1 tsp
Cocoa Powder-4 1/2 tbs
Sugar-3/4 cup
Milk-1/2 cup
Oil-1/2 cup
Curd-1/2 cup
1/2 tsp instant coffee powder
1/4 cup boiling water
Vanilla-1 tsp

Fudge Frosting:

butter 70 grams
cocoa powder 70 grams
330 grams powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoons vanilla extrac

Dark Chocolate ganache:

Ingredients:

morde dark chocolate 500 g
fresh cream 200 g

Simple Sugar Syrup
2 cups granulated sugar
2 cups water
2 tsp vanilla essence

Cake boards for 7" cake
cake boxes for 7" cake

Inventory on Monday (for 4 cakes)
Order on Tuesday
Have on hand by Thursday

Bake the first set of cakes and make the frosting on Friday night
Decorate cake on Saturday night
Take pictures on Sunday during daylight

Oatmeal WWF Coconut Muffins

Oatmeal Coconut Muffins with orange zest, nuts & raisins

1 cup maida
1 cup wwf
1 cup quick cooking oats
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed fresh grated coconut
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped cashew nuts
1 cup full fat milk
1/2 cup orange juice
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
orange zest
5 tbsp butter melted

orange & coconut oats wwf muffins

Preheat oven to 350F. Line 18 medium size muffin cups with liners
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, zest, salt and sugar. Stir in shredded coconut.
In a medium bowl whisk together orange juice, milk and vanilla extract.
Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in liquid mixture. Stir until the wet ingredients are almost fully combined and only a few streaks of flour remain.
Pour in the melted butter and stir until butter is completely incorporated and no streaks of dry ingredients remain.
Divide evenly into prepared muffin pan (muffin cups will be very full).
Bake for 22-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Turn muffins out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Makes 12.

Recipe Post - Chocolate Truffle

This is going to be the first of my practice cakes for 2016.  This will be a basic eggless chocolate cake with chocolate fudge filling and dark chocolate ganache frosting.

Recipes are adapter from Gayathri's Cookspot for the eggless chocolate cake; the fudge filling is adapted from Chocolate, Chocolate and more chocolate blog.  The ganache is Subhashini's recipe from FondBites cake decoration posts.

The cake is going to be 2 layer; 1 kg chocolate cake made with 2 7-inch sponges. The recipe below is version 1 as estimated by me for 1 kg.


Basic Eggless Chocolate Cake
(Gayathri's cookspot recipe)

Ingredients
Maida/ Flour-1 cup
Baking Powder-1/2 tsp
Baking Soda-1 tsp
Cocoa Powder-4 1/2 tbs
Sugar-3/4 cup
Milk-1/2 cup
Oil-1/2 cup
Curd-1/2 cup
1/2 tsp instant coffee powder
1/4 cup boiling water
Vanilla-1 tsp

Procedure:
Preheat oven to 175°C.
Grease, line and dust two 7″ cake tins.
In a bowl mix together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda.
Make a well in the centre and add oil, milk, curd and vanilla.
Mix until all the ingredients are incorporated.\
add 1/2 tsp of instant coffee to 1/4 cup boiling water
Weigh the batter and divide it equally between two pans
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
Place the tins on a wire rack for 5 minutes.
Flip the cake on the rack, remove the lining paper and allow it to cool completely before using it with any other filling and frosting.
You can also wrap it up in cling wrap and refrigerate to use it later.

Chocolate Fudge Frosting:

Ingredients
butter 70 grams
cocoa powder 70 grams
330 grams powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions
In a saucepan, over low heat, melt butter. Stir in cocoa powder. Mixture will resemble a thick paste.
Transfer chocolate mixture to a large mixing bowl. With mixer on low speed, add in powdered sugar and milk, alternating the two. Reserve a few tablespoons of milk. If frosting is thick, add in remaining milk. Add vanilla extract.
Turn mixer to medium high speed and beat about 5 minutes, until frosting is smooth and creamy.
Frost cake or cupcakes as desired.

Dark Chocolate ganache:

Ingredients:
morde dark chocolate 500 g
fresh cream 200 g

Simple sugar syrup - few tbspn
1:1 sugar syrup
For 2 cups granulated sugar, add 2 cups water, bring to a boil and stir until all sugar is dissolved.
Remove impurities if any with a slotted spoon.
Store in a clean jar in the refrigerator for a month's time.

Instructions:
chop chocolate roughly and microwave on high for a minute
stir and check for lumps
if not melted fully, microwave again for about 30 seconds and check if melted
add cream to the hot chocolate and mix vigorously using a wooden spoon
keep whisking until smooth and shiny

Things to note while making the cake:
1. Weight of the batter; also how much weight you put in each pan
2. Weight of the finished cake
3. Height of the cake
4. Did you use up all of the frosting and the filling?
5. Do you think the cake would look better if it were taller or less wider?

List of cake flavors for the year

Baking Mad

So it is 4 days into the new year and I have still not recovered from the baking bug!  I have not been baking much for some time now.  The last order that I made was for probably Deepika's daughter in October.  I have not made so much at home either since my full time job has become more than full time of late since I started managing a new project there.
But I'm just back to work after a break now and I am quite keen to start baking again.  I have decided that I am probably not going to be able to make really expensive cakes, cakes with elaborate fondant work or couverture chocolate or vanilla extract since I do not have the clientele for such cakes.  What will work for me is making classic flavours and making neat cakes.
So my plan for the new year is to first focus only on flavours.  I have come up with a list of 10 flavours that I will try to make over the next 10 months.  I will make 40 cakes in all, making a single cake 4 times in one month so that I feel confident enough of adding the cake to my menu.  At the end of 2016, I will publish my menu with the list of 10 eggless cakes and the flavour pairings.
These 40 cakes are going to be apart from the monthly bakes that I wish to do for my family, they will also be apart from the cakes that I make for family celebrations.  This is mainly because I often like to tweak family celebration cakes to the personal preferences of my family members.  My family members do not often go for classic flavour pairings since they are used to too much customization.
The 40 cakes are also going to give me the opportunity to focus on neat cakes, clean edges on the frosting and different piping techniques for the  borders.
Given the chance, I would have also liked to make one figurine in a month and other techniques as well but I do not believe that I have the time to do such things.  It will be a tough ask for me to do these 40 cakes each week in this year but that is what I am going to focus and commit towards.
I will not do any promotions for Galga this year, not solicit any orders.  I will not plan to conduct classes eithers - the sole focus will be to work on my strengths and ensure that I can deliver the flavour, texture of cakes that I want to.
There's another thing that working on the same flavour of cake multiple number of times is going to help me achieve - buying ingredients monthly instead of weekly.  No more last minute trips to the supermarket hunting for that elusive ingredient and getting stressed or compromising when I do not find it.  I plan stuff 1 month in advance so I can make the cakes I want to comfortably.
Another thing that I am going to decide is that these cakes will be made only during the night.  I am yet to plan how I will do this but this is what I am going to do.
Apart from this, I also wish to make bread twice a week, cookies and muffins once a month.  I am willing to let go of the bread until I fulfill my kitchen aid dream because it's quite impossible that I have the time to make bread twice a week.  Also with my recent inclination to eat bread everyday in the mornings and my family's capacity to make an extra large loaf disappear completely at breakfast, it will become impossible for me to meet my family's demand for bread with my home made loaves.

Baking Timetable

time table

Sunday morning
Bake 2 7" lemon cakes
Bake 6 lemon cupcakes
Freeze lemon cakes

Sunday night
Make sugar syrup
whip cream to stiff peaks
color as required
Torte, fill and frost
Pipe flowers

Monday morning
Bake 2 chocolate 7" cakes

Make dark chocolate hazelnut ganache

Make milk chocolate ganache

Freeze chocolate cakes

Monday night
Make sugar syrup
Torte, fill and frost the chocolate cakes
Finish tiara

Sammu 6 bday cake

1 cups sugar
1/2 of (1 and 3/4) cups all-purpose flour
1/2 of (3/4) cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
3/4 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup boiling water "PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 7-inch round baking pans.
2. Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.
3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost with "PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING. Makes 12 servings.

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT GANACHE
Ingredients
1/2 cup heavy cream
125 g dark chocolate
1/3 cup hazelnut butter (pre-made, or I just process toasted hazelnuts in a food processor until they become butter)
Equipment
A saucepan
A whisk

Instructions
Heat cream in a saucepan on low until it just starts to bubble; add hazelnut butter, and mix until well incorporated.
With the heat still on low, add chocolate, and keep whisking until everything is melted together nicely. Remove from heat, and whisk until the ganache thickens.
Pipe the ganache onto the macarons after it’s cooled.
Note: this amount makes extra ganache, which I use as a spread for pancakes and toast. Cut the ingredients in half if you just want to use it for macarons.

4 ferrero rocher crushed

milk chocolate ganache

250 g cream
500 g milk chocolate
1 tsp vanilla extract

heat cream till it bubbles
pour over milk chocolate
let it sit for a few minutes
stir both together

whip 1/4 cup cream to stiff peaks.
pipe whirls all around the cake
dust the whirls with cocoa  powder

Lemon cake

Oil 1/2 cup
Sugar – 3/4 cup
1 cup buttermilk (made with 1 cup milk + 3 tbsp lemon juice)
Lemon rind – 1 teaspoon
All-purpose flour – 1 1/2 cups
Baking powder – 1 1/4 teaspoon
baking soda 1/2 teaspoon
vanilla extract 1 teaspoon

1 Preheat oven to 200 C for 10 mts. Grease and flour an 8″ inch baking pan.
2 Cream the sugar and buttermilk until the sugar is completely dissolved. Add baking pwd and baking soda and combine. Leave aside for 3 mts. You will find that bubbles appear.
3 Add vegetable oil and vanilla essence and mix well. Now, slowly add little sifted flour/maida (about a tbsp) at a time and fold into the wet ingredients.
4 Bake in preheated oven at 200 degree C for 10 mts, reduce temperature to 175 and bake for 20-25 mts or till a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.
5 Cool the cake for 20-30 mts and then overturn onto a plate.

Beat 1 1/2 cups whipping cream to stiff peaks
Remove 1/4 cup and color it green
Take cream from freezer, beat to soft peaks
Remove 1/4 cup.
Remaining cream add 2 more drops pink color
Remove 1/4 cup
Remaining cream add 2 more drops pink color

Piped flowers design from Erica O Brien

Weekend shopping list

weekend shopping list:

whipping cream - arife la moulde
morde chocolate - arife la moule
castor sugar there?

rest all in nilgiris

butter
fresh cream
castor sugar
eggs - 6
yoghurt
milk
instant coffee powder

next week's baking

marble cakes for neighbours

Friday - mini cupcakes
Saturday - frost mini cupcakes
Sunday - cashew star cookies for Ani
Monday - Prabhakaran's cake Marble cake
Wednesday - Upstairs cake Eggless Marble cake
Friday - double chocolate cake from veena's art of cakes
Saturday ganache filling and frosting the cakes
Sunday make teddy bear toppers and take photos

Cashew star cookies for Ani

Butter – 200 gms
Caster Sugar – 2/3 cup
Egg – 2 or Milk 80 ml
All-purpose flour – 2 cup
Cornflour – 1 1/2 cup
Baking powder – 1 teaspoon
Salt – 1 teaspoon
Milk powder – 6 tablespoons
Cashews – 120 gms
Granulated sugar – 6 tablespoons
Vanilla extract – 2 teaspoon
Lemon zest – 1 teaspoon ( Optional)

1. Pre-heat oven to 180 degree C. Process cashews and granulated sugar in your small jar food processor in pulse mode for one second at a time, for about 10 times until the cashew gets powdered and does not leak any oil.
2. Beat butter till light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat until mixed well
3. Add the caster sugar and beat on medium high speed for about 3 to 5 minutes until light and fluffy.
4. Sift together flour, cornflour, salt, baking powder and milk powder together. Whisk together the cashew powder.
5. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat just until combined. Do not over beat. If dough is too soft, cover with cling wrap and refrigerate until it firms up a bit.
6. Roll out the dough to about 1 cm thick
7. Cut into star shapes with the biscuit cutter
8. These are soft cookies and are not crispy. You could store them in refrigerators if you like to munch them crispy.

Eggless marble cake for Ram's family

Eggless marble cake

Bake in tube pan.

All purpose flour - 1 cups (I used maida)
Baking powder - 1/2 + 1/8 tsps
Baking soda - 1/4 tsp
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Oil - 1/4 cup
Sugar - 1/4 + 1/8 cup + 3/4 tbsps, superfine or coarsely powdered, divided
Yogurt - 1/4 cup
Milk - 1/2 cup, luke warm
Apple cider vingar - 1/2 tbsp (or white vinegar or lemon juice)
Vanilla extract - 1/2 tsp
Cocoa powder - 1/6 cup (dutch processed)
Hot water - 1/8 cup
Instant coffee powder - 1/2 tbsp
Almond extract - 1/8 tsp

Method
Preheat oven to 160 C and position a rack in the center of the oven. Grease the bundt pan thoroughly including the creases and flour it well and tap out the excess flour.
In a small bowl, add the hot water, instant coffee powder, cocoa powder and 2 tbsps sugar and mix till smooth with no lumps. Add almond extract and mix. Set aside to cool.
Add vinegar to luke warm milk and set aside till use. This is called buttermilk which is used for baking.
In a medium bowl, sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
In large bowl, add the oil and superfine sugar and beat till the sugar is well combined. Add the yogurt, prepared buttermilk and vanilla extract and mix till combined.
Gradually add the flour in four additions and mix until just combined and smooth.
Transfer a little less than half of the cake batter to the cocoa mixture and mix with a spoon until smooth.
With the help of a large spoon, alternate scoops of the vanilla and chocolate batters into the pan. Take a chopstick and create a swirl all through the batters taking care not to touch the sides of the pan. Smooth the top lightly.
Bake in the preheated oven for 45 to 55 mts till a skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Check from 40 mts onwards. Cool on a wire cake rack for 10 mts and invert the cake onto the rack to cool completely.

Marble cake for Prabhakaran family

For Prabhakaran family:

To be baked in tube pan

Marble loaf

Unsalted butter – 85 gms, at room temperature
Caster sugar – 1/2 cup
Eggs – 2
Vanilla extract – 1/2 teaspoon
All-purpose flour – 1 cups plus 1 tablespoons, loosely packed
Baking powder – 1/2 + 1/8 teaspoons
Salt – 1/4 teaspoon
Milk – 1/4 cup, at room temperature
Dark Chocolate – 60 gms

Method:

1. Pre-heat oven to 180 degree C. Butter and flour a 9 inch by 6 inch loaf pan. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

2. Chop the chocolate and melt in microwave for 40 seconds and stir until chocolate is fully melted. You can also use double boiler to melt the chocolate. Set aside to cool a bit.

3. Add butter into the bowl of your electric beater and beat until light and fluffy.

4. Add sugar to butter and beat on medium high speed for about 5 minutes until the mixture turns pale yellow, creamy and fluffy.

5. Add the eggs one by one and beat for about one minute after each addition of egg. Finally add vanilla extract and beat until it has been incorporated.

6. Add the flour mixture in 3 parts and milk in 2 parts, alternating both, starting and ending with flour mixture. Beat just until combined after each addition of flour and milk. Do not over beat after the addition of flour mixture.

7. Transfer half of the batter to another bowl. Add the melted and cooled dark chocolate into one half of the batter and fold it using rubber spatula until completely blended. Do not over beat.

8. Alternate both batters and spoon them into the prepared loaf pan. Keep adding layers until you finish using both the batters. Tap the pan few times to get rid of air bubbles at the bottom.

9. Use a skewer/toothpick to go zig zag just 4 to 6 times. You will be tempted to do more, but just control and not more than 6 times. Bake in pre-heated oven for about 60 minutes to 70 minutes until a tooth pick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes and invert pan to remove cake from pan and let cake cool completely to room temperature on the wire rack.

Double chocolate cake with strawberry filling!

Recipe references from Veena's art of cakes.



Saturday 4 AM for the cake

Double Chocolate chocolate Cake

Ingredients
225 grams (1 cup)  Butter
270 grams (1 1/3 cup)  Dark Brown Sugar
4 large eggs
240 grams (2 1/2 Cups) cake flour
40 grams (1/3 cup )coco powder
100 grams (3.5 oz) Dark or semi sweet Chocolate.
1 tsp of baking powder
1/2 tsp of baking soda.
150 ml yogurt
2 tbsp of milk
1 to 2 tsp of Coffee dissolved in 2 tbsp of water
1/8 tsp salt.

Method

Have all your Ingredients ready at room temperature and prepare your pans.
Prepare two 6" pans and use cupcake pans for the remaining batter.
Melt the Chocolate and let cool. ( I place in the microwave safe bow and microwave for 1.30 minutes at intervals)
Mix your yogurt and milk until smooth without lumps.
Place your butter and sugar in a mixing bowl.
Mix until light and fluffy.
Add the yogurt mixture to the above butter and sugar mixture.
Next add the flour, vanilla, coffee and chocolate and mix until combined. It will be a fairly dense mixture.
Set this aside.
Place your eggs and a bit of salt in a clean mixing bowl with the whisk attachment.
Whisk until light fluffy and forms ribbons when you lift the whisk out..
Now add 1/4 of  the egg mixture to the cake batter, and mix in thoroughly.
Now add another 1/4 of the mixture but this time fold in gently.
Add the rest of the eggs mixture and fold again gently.

Cool and cling wrap and freeze

Thaw whipping cream overnight in the fridge

Whip cream to soft pinks, add 2 drops of electric pink color.

whip to stiff peaks

Make chocolate ganache 1:1 ratio
125 g dark chocolate
125 ml cream
add a tablespoon of butter and mix together
Cool to room temperature tehn refrigerate
microwave before using
Make sugar syrup
Torte the cake neatly.
Measure one inch height for each layer when you torte
Dam the lower cake layer with fresh cream.
Fill inside with strawberry filling
Top with a little whipped cream
Brush both sides of the cake with sugar syrup
Place top layer on strawberry filling
Brush again with syrup and frost with pink whipping cream.
Try for flat top and straight edges
Make a clean well defined border at the bottom
Allow the cake to refrigerate for 1 hour
Pour over the ganache
Pipe swirls over teh ganache
Top the swirls with mini oreos

Yellow cake with pineapple filling!

yellow cake from fondbites:
Ingredients:

Unsalted butter – 1/2 cup
Sugar – 1 cup
Eggs – 2
Egg Yolks – 2
Vanilla Extract – 1 1/2 teaspoon
All-purpose flour – 1 1/2 cup
Baking powder – 1 1/2 teaspoon
Salt – 1/2 teaspoon
Buttermilk – 1 cup

Method:

1. Pre-heat oven to 170 degree C. I used a ring mould. You can dust a 9 inch round cake pan with butter and dust it with flour.

2. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Keep aside.

3. Add butter into your bowl of your electric beater. Beat on medium speed until butter becomes soft. Increase speed to high and beat for about 2 minutes until butter becomes fluffy.

4. Add sugar into the butter and beat on medium speed until sugar combines well with the butter. Then increase speed to high and keep beating for about 5 to 7 minutes until the mixture becomes creamy, pale and fluffy.

5. Add both the eggs one by one and beat for about 1 minute on medium speed after addition of each of the egg.

6. Add the yolks one by one and beat for about 1 minute after the addition of each yolk

7. Add vanilla extract and beat for 1 minute until the extract combines well into the batter.

8. Divide the flour into 3 parts. Add the first part of the flour and beat on slow speed just until the flour combines into the batter. Do not over beat

9. Divide buttermilk into 2 parts. Add first part of the butter milk and beat on slow speed just until incorporated. Do not overbeat.

10. Add second part of the flour and beat on slow speed just until incorporated. Do not over beat.

11. Now add final part of buttermilk and beat on slow speed just until incorporated. Do not over beat.

12. Now add the final portion of the flour and beat on slow speed just until the flour has been incorporated. Do not over beat

13. Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan. Bake in pre-heated oven for 30 to 40 minutes at 170 degree C, or until a tooth pick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

14. Cool on wire rack. Run a knife through the sides of the cake. Invert pan and let cool completely.

You can serve them warm or if you choose to use them for cake decoration, cling wrap the cakes once completely cooled and freeze them until use.

caramelized pineapple filling:
1 small pineapple, peeled, cored & diced
56 g butter, melted
1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

melt the butter
add sugar & diced pineapple & vanilla extract
cook together until pineapple dice are tender and caramelized
if you want to make it a little thick, add cornflour

use red non stick pans.
make 2 layers
remaining put in the tube pan

buy pineapple juice, pineapple
don't colour whipping cream, leave it white
pipe yellow border and top with small pieces of pineapple
write on the whipping cream with some melted chocolate or dark chocolate ganache
Friends Forever
or leave it simple and write on fondant banner
focus on neat cake
straight borders
levelled top edge
simple border

Eggless Red Velvet Cupcakes

Eggless Red velvet cupcakes from Priyanka Arora Nayak

150 g flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup castor sugar
1/4 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp red food coloring
1 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven
Line pan with liners
Whisk flour, bp, bs & salt
Beat together butter & sugar until light.
Add vanilla.
Sift in the cocoa powder to the butter+sugar mixture
Add red food colouring
Mix until well combined on low speed
Add half the flour, half the buttermilk
Mix well.
Add half of the remaining flour, all the buttermilk.
Add the remaining flour.
Mix until just combined and no dry streaks of ingredients are seen
Divide equally into prepared liners
Bake for 25 minutes until done.

Cream cheese frosting
1/2 cup cream cheese
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup icing sugar

Beat together cream cheese, butter & vanilla.
Gradually add all icing sugar until smooth and creamy.

Rainbow cake for Diya

Orange & Strawberry Cake
White Chocolate & Strawberry Filling
Buttercream frosting

1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup or 125 ml strawberry yoghurt
1/2 cup or 125 ml regular yoghurt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp zest from an orange

Cream yoghurt, zest and sugar until well blended
Add the baking powder and bakind soda and mix once
While it bubbles up, sieve the flour 2 to 3 times from a height.
Add the oil & vanilla extract to the yoghurt-sugar mixture and combine to form an emulsion
Fold in the flour

Split into 3 4" cake pans

Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes at 180 degrees

Use remaining batter for mini cupcakes

White Chocolate Mousse

White Chocolate-175 gm
Amul Low Fat Cream-200 ml
Cold Fresh Cream ( whipping cream)-250 ml
1 tsp zest from an orange
Veg gelatine / Agar Agar Powder-1/2 tsp
Cold Water-1/8 cup

Procedure:

Mix veg gelatine to cold water and set aside for 5 minutes.
Chop room temperature chocolate and place it in a bowl. Heat 100 ml amul cream and when it starts boiling pour it on the chocolate.
Mix until the chocolate has melted. Allow it to cool.
Add the bloomed gelatine mixture to the remaining amul cream.
Heat it. At first it will be very thick and jelly like.
When it starts heating it will start thinning.
When it starts boiling, add it to the melted chocolate and mix well.
Mix.
Keep on mixing until it is completely incorporated. Place it in fridge until cool.
Whip the cold fresh cream until soft peaks form.
Add a portion of the whipped cream to the cooled chocolate mixture and mix until incorporated.
Now add this back to the whipped cream.
Using a spatula, gently fold the chocolate into the cream without deflating it.
Refrigerate for atleast one hour.
It is so light and delicious.

Vanilla Buttercream:
Salted Butter – 150 g, at room temperature, but a little firm
Icing Sugar – 300 g
Fresh cream – almost 1/3 cup
Vanilla extract – 1 teaspoon

Method:

1. Sift icing sugar a couple of times.  Keep aside.

2. Add the fresh cream into the bowl of your electric mixer. Into that add 1/2 of the icing sugar and beat on low speed until the icing sugar has been incorporated. Beat for one minute, and then add the remaining icing sugar and beat on medium high speed for 3 to 5 minutes until most of the icing sugar has been dissolved in the cream.

3. Add vanilla extract and beat until combined.

4. Add butter a little at a time while beating and beat on medium speed just until all butter has been used up.

5. Now beat just for a minute or two until the frosting becomes creamy and stiff.

6. Do not over beat after this stage or the frosting might curdle.

To assemble the cake

Pick a cake board
Stick a blob of buttercream
Place bottom most layer on top
Brush with sugar syrup
Pipe a dam of buttercream
Fill inside dam with strawberry pie filling and to that with white chocolate mousse
Place second layer of cake
Brush with sugar syrup
Pipe a dam of buttercream
Fill inside dam with strawberry pie filling and to that with white chocolate mousse
Place third layer of cake
Brush sugar syrup
Frost sides with large tip
Scrape most of the buttercream away to create a very thin buttercream coat.
Refrigerate this for at least an hour's time
Tint buttercream in 5 colours
Elect Orange, Electric Yellow, Electric Green, ELectric Blue, Electric Pink
Place each colour in a different tumbler in the order in which you wish to use them
Keep paper towels handy
Keep a couple of spoons of the same size handy
Go around the frosted cake with a toothpick and mark out the center of the cake, height wise
Pipe two dots above the centre, one on the centre and two below
Count 1,2, 3 release pressure and pull the tip away after you stop releasing pressure.
Count rhythymically
Pipe a few rows and keep checking whether the spaces are all alligned
Leave the last row of dots as is, that will be the back of the cake.
Finish the sides, put the cake in the fridge for 15 minutes.
Take the cake out, Pipe the top row in alternate colours and so on until you reach the center of the cake.
http://thecakeblog.com/2013/07/diy-rainbow-petal-cake.html

Inspiration cake from Linu's rainbow petals cake:

Mango and Kitkat cupcakes

Cake Flour - 360 gm (See how to make Cake flour in instruction)
Sugar - 180 gm
Baking powder - 1 and 1/2 tsp
Baking soda - 3/4 tsp
Salt - 3/4 tsp
Oil - 3/4 cup
Vanilla extract - 4 tsp
Milk - 1 cup
Mango - 1/2 cup puree
Apple cider or any vinegar - 1 and 1/2 tbsp

1. Make 3 cups of cake flour - fill a cup with maida, remove 2 tbsp and add 2 tbsp corn flour to it.
Mix and Sieve this 5 to 6 times to make cake flour.
2. Peel and puree one average/big sized mango - fine puree is good
3. Mix together milk and vinegar to make buttermilk and leave alone for 5 minutes
4. Beat together the buttermilk and the sugar until sugar dissolves.
5. Add the mango puree, oil and vanilla extract and beat together
5. Sieve together the cake flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
6. Fold into the liquid mixture until just mixed
7. pour carefully into cupcake liners.
This will make 18 average sized cupcakes

Whipped cream:
Whip 1 cup whipping cream to soft peaks.
Add a couple of drops of color and whip to stiff peaks to frost the cupcakes.

Kitkat cupcakes

Chocolate Cupcakes:
Ingredients:

Cake Flour - 2 1/4 cup ( See how the cake flour can be made here.)
Sugar - 1 1/2 cup
Unsweetened cocoa powder - 7 1/2 tbsp
Baking Soda - 1 and 1/2 tsp
Salt - 3/4 tsp
Water - 1 and 1/2 cup
Oil - 12 tbsp
Apple Cider or any vinegar - 3 tbsp
Vanilla extract - 2 tsp
Instant Coffee - 3/4 tsp (Optional)

Method:

1.  Preheat the oven to 350 F.  Line 18 cupcake liners.
2.  In a large bowl whisk all the dry ingredients.
3.  In a small bowl, whisk all the liquid ingredients with the coffee granules.
4.  Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.  Whisk until everything is well mixed. Do not over mix.
5. Fill the cupcake liner about 2/3rd.
6. Bake for about 15 to 17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the cupcake center comes out clean. (Few crumbs clinging is absolutely fine... as it will be moist)
7.  Cool the cupcakes completely before you dig in, so that it is nicely set.

Caramel Sauce

Granulated white sugar – 2 cups
Unsalted butter – 200 gms
Fresh cream – 1 cup
Salt – 1 tablespoon

1. In a heavy bottomed sauce pan, add the sugar. Bring it on fire on medium flame. Keep swirling up the pan until the sugar starts melting. Do not use a laddle or spatula to keep mixing. Just use swirling up motion on the pan. If the base caramelizes quickly, remove the pan from fire, use a wooden spatula to mix up and scrape the bottom of the pan and put it back on fire. Do not be tempted to keep stirring this step all the time. It will crystallize the sugar.

2. Keep the flame in medium and wait until the sugar dissolves completely, while caramelization also happens simultaneously

3. Once the sugar has melted, you could wait for few seconds until the colour changes to amber. Here you can choose to stop at a lighter shade of caramel or until it goes up to 2 shades darker. The darker the caramel, the better the flavour. But you should also be careful that you do not smoke it up. So at this stage you have to carefully watch and decide when to stop the caramelization process by adding the butter as in the next step.

4. Remove the pan from the stove and add the butter. Keep stirring with a wooden spatula until the butter completely blends with the sauce. It will whiz up, so you keep yourself a little far away from the pan.

5. It might seem impossible for the butter to get combined with the caramel, but keep stirring and the both will come together.

6. Add the salt and cream and mix well again.
Whipped Caramel Milk Chocolate Ganache

7. Bring back the sauce on fire on medium heat for about 3 to 5 minutes until the sauce boils and thickens up a bit. Switch off flame. Cool sauce in room temperature and transfer to an airtight container and you can store it in refrigerator for about couple of weeks. Before using on your cake, you need to thaw the sauce or microwave it in 5 seconds interval.

Milk Chocolate – 450 gms
Dairy fresh cream – 150 gms
Caramel sauce – 1 cup ( Make from this recipe )
Whipping cream – 1/2 cup, cold

Rajesh 37 Bday cake

Eggless Chocolate Mud Cake

Makes 2 – 8″ cakes or one 13″ * 9″ sheet cake

Ingredients:

Butter-250 gm
Dark Chocolate-200 gm
Water-1 cup
Caster Sugar-2 cups
Curd-1/2 cup
Flour / Maida – 2 3/4 cup
Baking Soda-1 tsp
Baking Powder-1 1/2 tsp
Cocoa Powder-1/4 cup


Procedure:

1. Grease & line 2 8" cake pans

2. Preheat oven to 180°C.

3. In a sauce pan mix together butter, chocolate, water and sugar.

4. Keep on medium flame and keep on stirring until the butter and chocolate are completely melted.

5. Remove from flame and allow it to cool for 10 minutes. Mix curd.

6. In another bowl sift together maida, baking powder, baking soda and cocoa powder.

7. Add this to the warm chocolate butter mixture and whisk until incorporated.

8. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

9. Cool on wire rack, wrap it with a cling wrap and refigerate.

Eggless dark chocolate mousse filling

 Eggless Dark Chocolate Mousse:

Ingredients:

Dark Chocolate-175 gm

Amul Low Fat Cream-200 ml

Cold Fresh Cream ( whipping cream)-250 ml

Veg gelatine / Agar Agar Powder-1/2 tsp

Cold Water-1/8 cup



Procedure:

1. Mix veg gelatine to cold water and set aside for 5 minutes.

2. Chop room temperature chocolate and place it in a bowl. Heat 100 ml amul cream and when it starts boiling pour it on the chocolate.

3.  Mix until the chocolate has melted. Allow it to cool.

4. Add the bloomed gelatine mixture to the remaining amul cream.

5. Heat it. At first it will be very thick and jelly like.

6. When it starts heating it will start thinning.

7. When it starts boiling, add it to the melted chocolate and mix well.

8. Mix.

9. Keep on mixing until it is completely incorporated. Place it in fridge until cool.

10. Whip the cold fresh cream until soft peaks form.

11. Add a portion of the whipped cream to the cooled chocolate mixture and mix until incorporated.

12. Now add this back to the whipped cream.

13. Using a spatula, gently fold the chocolate into the cream without deflating it.

14. Refrigerate for atleast one hour.

15. It is so light and delicious.

Dark chocolate ganache

400 g dark chocolate
200g cream

Heat cream till bubbly and pour over chopped dark chocolate

Follow Subhashini's method to get sharp edges on ganache.

Get a colour printout done for the super man logo
Write 'Happy Birthday to our Super Man' on a white fondant banner in beautiful cursive writing.

Make a star bottom and shell on top

saturday kitkat cupcakes for deepika
2 coffee, 1 chocolate

Whole Wheat peanut butter blondies

http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2014/01/24/whole-wheat-peanut-butter-blondies/

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup (185g) creamy peanut butter*
• 1/3 cup (80ml) melted coconut oil
• 1/2 cup (90g) loosely-packed light brown sugar (or dark brown sugar)
• 1/4 cup (60ml) milk*
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup (126g) whole wheat flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/3 cup (42g) peanuts
• 1/3 cup (60g) dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips
  

OPTIONAL CHOCOLATE DRIZZLE

• 1/4 cup (45g) dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 teaspoon creamy peanut butter

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Line an 8-inch baking pan with aluminum foil or parchment paper, making sure there is enough overhang on the sides to easily remove the blondies. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together peanut butter, oil, and brown sugar until smooth. Whisk in the milk and vanilla. Add the flour, salt, and baking powder. Mix until combined. Use your arm muscles - the batter will be very thick!

Transfer batter to baking pan and press it into place using the back of a spatula. Sprinkle the top with peanuts and dark chocolate chips, pressing them gently into the batter.

Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, until the edges are just barely browning. The top will look very soft.  Remove from oven and cool completely before slicing into squares or hearts. The first batch I made two years ago, I cut into the blondies too early and they all crumbled. Be sure to cool for at least 3 hours or overnight(preferred) before cutting.

For the optional drizzle: melt chocolate chips and peanut butter together. Drizzle over cut blondies. Blondies stay fresh in an airtight container for up to one week at room temperature.

Make peanut butter at home:

http://saffrontrail.blogspot.in/2013/02/chocolate-coconut-peanut-butter.html

Homemade Chocolate Coconut Peanut Butter 
Makes 1 medium jar
Time taken: 5-10 mins
Adapted from NeverHomemaker

Ingredients
1 cup of roasted skinned peanuts (use ready roasted variety to save time)
1/2 tsp salt (avoid if using salted roasted peanuts)
50-100 grams of dark chocolate, chopped or use 1/4 cup chocolate chips
1 tbsp cold pressed coconut oil (or any edible coconut oil)

Equipment required
A food processor or mixer

Directions

1. In a food processor or mixer, blend all of the above until it turns into a fine paste. Scrape down the sides of the jar 2-3 times and run the mixer for a total of 2-3 minutes until everything comes together to a buttery consistency.
2. With a silicone spatula, scrape everything into a clean dry glass bottle.
3. The butter solidifies in the fridge. When left out it is a nice spreadable consistency and I prefer to leave it out. Prepare a small quantity at a time so that there's no chance of spoilage.

Chocolate fudge frosting

chocolate fudge frosting

FROSTING:
150 g dark chocolate
113 g butter
2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
220 g icing sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Put chocolate, butter and espresso powder in a metal bowl set over a saucepan filled with 1 inch of simmering water (do not let water boil or allow bottom of bowl to touch water). Cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, until butter and chocolate have melted, espresso powder has dissolved and mixture is smooth. Remove pot from heat. In a large bowl, whisk confectioners' sugar, half-and-half and vanilla together until smooth. Beat chocolate mixture into sugar mixture until glossy.