Fishy Chocolate Cake

One of our friends' child, Z is learning to talk and his vocabulary is increasing manifold. One evening, they came over for dinner, and we were having a relatively quiet evening when suddenly little Z pointed at a tea -coaster and said 'Feeesh'! We all burst into a laughter. That was probably the first word he spoke all evening.

It was Z's 3rd birthday and we decided to get him a set of magnetic fishing poles to 'reel in' all the 26 letters of the English alphabet that were engraved on foam shaped like fish. Keeping with the 'fishy' theme, I baked a simple chocolate cake and shaped it into a fish. Little Z's reaction was priceless, and worth every minute of work that went into it. Here it goes -

Time: 2.5 hours (baking, cooling and frosting)
Serves: 6-8 persons

Cake:
I simply followed my tried and tested recipe for a basic chocolate cake here, except that I used regular cocoa powder instead of dark cocoa powder. Since I wanted to shape it into a fish, I baked it in a single layer square 9x9 inches cake pan.

Frosting:
1-1/2 sticks of unsalted butter at room temperature
1-1/3 cups of powdered sugar
Food coloring of choice (optional)
M&Ms (sorted according to color)

• Whip the butter with sugar into a light fluffy frosting, about 5-8 minutes. 
• Add food coloring of choice. I did not want a white frosting for a child's cake, so I added a few drops of blue and yellow food coloring gel to get a light pastel green color. Set aside.

Shaping the cake:

• Once the cake is completely cooled, gently score out the body of a fish. Cut long the score marks using a serrated knife.

• Place two of the cut out corners along the lower half of the body, to form the fins. Take one of the remaining corners to make the tail. Gently pick up each part and place it on a tray. Trim edges to get desired shape. Attach with toothpicks so the fins and tail stay in place.

• Before frosting, tuck in strips of parchment paper under the cake sides that can be removed after frosting for a clean finished look.

• Using a offset spatula, spread the frosting evenly on the cake, starting from the centre and working your way out. Frost the sides and edges completely. 

• Time to let your imagination run wild. Decorate with M&Ms or any other topping of your choice. I chose M&Ms because Little Z likes to call them gems :)

• Remove parchment strips for a complete and clean look.

It was a colorful and bright fish, for a happy little 3 year old :)

Bon Appetit! 

Hetal from Houston

Chocolate Cupcake with Mocha Frosting

Cupcakes are always safer to bake as we can control the portion size and it takes lesser time. So last week for a friends get together, I decided to bake very simple chocolate ones. Never doubt the power of chocolate :P  Wanted it to look a little fancy and hence decided to use mocha frosting;  I love mocha :D and this recipe has been tried and tasted by a friend so I gave it a shot.

Packed tight and ready to go  :)

Prep Time: 30 mins
Baking Time: 30 mins
Serves: I never comment on that ;) it made 12 cupcakes though!

Ingredients :

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3/4 cup all-purpose flour 

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

3 large eggs ( room temperature) 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup sour cream

Whipping cream - 1/2 cup

Instant coffee powder - 1/4 tsp

Milk chocolate - 0.5-1 oz / 5-6 cubes ; this depends on your love for chocolate

Method:

Cake:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prep 12-cup standard muffin pan with paper liners.
• Into a medium bowl, sift together cocoa, flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
• In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each, then beat in vanilla. 
• With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture in two batches, alternating with sour cream and beginning and ending with flour.
• Pour batter into cups, filling each 3/4 full.
• Bake until a toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.
• While cupcakes are in oven, prepare the frosting.

Frosting:

• Melt the chocolate in a microwave at low power.
• Add coffee powder and blend well to make sure there are no lumps. Let it cool.
• Whip the cream with electric mixer till it forms stiff peaks and add the chocolate mixture to it. 

Tip from friend:  If you don't want to add chocolate, you can mix the coffee with a few teaspoons of whipping cream or milk and then add it to the whipped cream.

Cool cupcakes in pan for 5 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, then spread with frosting using a table knife or small offset spatula.
Decorate with grated chocolate, walnut / almonds or anything of your choice.

Enjoy baking! Bon Appetit ...

Ajanta from Walnut Creek, CA this time :)

Dark Chocolate & Blackberry Cake

It was a lovely, still cool saturday morning when I baked a dark chocolate cake to bring to a potluck at a friend's place. I paired it with blackberries -both preserved and fresh. It turned out to be a moist chocolate cake with a hint of blackberry. Everyone at the potluck loved it - even those who dont dig chocolate cakes. I was delighted, to say the least. Here it goes.

Serves: 10-12
Preparation time: 15 minutes

Bake time -35 minutes

Ingredients
3/4 cup dark cocoa (I used dutch processed)
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (I used King Arthur)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk
3 large cage-free eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil, plus more for greasing pans
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
1 tsp instant coffee
1 cup blackberry preserve or jam
1 cup fresh blackberries for topping/ decoration

Method

• Preheat oven to 350F. Grease two 9-inch cake pans and line with parchment paper. Avoid using pans with removable bottoms, since the batter is very thin - it might leak into the oven. Set aside. 
• Whisk all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Add the buttermilk, eggs, oil, and vanilla and whisk to combine. If you dont have buttermilk, you can substitute it with 1 tsp vinegar added to a cup of skimmed milk and let it sit for 5 minutes. Then proceed with the recipe. 
• Stir instant coffee into the boiling water and whisk this into the batter until incorporated. The batter will be thin, so gently pour the batter into prepared pans.
• Bake 30 to 35 minutes in the middle rack of the oven or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack. Remove the parchment. Cool completely. Leave the cake at room temperature for an hour if you wish to frost it with ganache immediately.

Blackberry preserve spread

NOTE: You can make this cake the day before serving, sandwich it with blackberry preserve, and keep it covered in the fridge.

Chocolate Ganache
1 cup heavy cream
10 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped fine or chocolate chips.

Blackberry preserve sandwiched between two layers

• Set a heat proof bowl over a pot of boiling water (It works like a double boiler). Add chocolate chunks/chips to the bowl. 
• As the chocolate begins to melt, whisk in the cream until well incorporated. Stir gently - avoid beating the mixture for a bubble free glossy finish. Set aside for 20 to 30 minutes to thicken to a spreadable consistency. Alternatively, refrigerate it for 10-15 minutes to hasten the thickening process.

Assembly

• Place one cake layer on plate/ cake stand. My cakes had risen a lot, and I had to trim off the top so  I could stack them evenly. In hind sight - I think I should have trimmed them further.
• Spread 1 cup blackberry preserve. Sandwich the other cake layer on top. 
• Ice the cake using a metal spatula. If the ganache is still thin, you can gently drizzle it to cover the cake. If you have baked ahead - allow the cake to come to room temperature before icing with the ganache.



Ready to go

• Garnish with blackberries and serve. I garnished it once we reached our friend's place, and were ready to eat dessert.

Note- This cake can be made using any jam or preserve of your choice. Garnish with the same fruit. Raspberries or strawberries would add a splash of color as well. :)

This recipe is based on Serena Bass' Cheating Chocolate Cake

Dark Chocolate Blackberry Cake

Bon Apetit!

Hetal from Houston

Khushi's Eggless Chocolate Cake

You never know where and how you find a good recipe. In this case, my niece Khushi wrote this eggless chocolate cake recipe for me on her notebook paper with pencil many many years ago - she was barely 6-7 years old at that time. I'm pretty sure she has long forgotten about it, but I still have that little piece of paper. Here it goes.


Bake time: 20-25 minutes
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Serves: 6-8 persons


Ingredients
Maida/ All purpose flour - 1 1/2 cup
Sugar (powdered) - 1 cup 
Cocoa - 2 tbsp
Butter (softened) - 6 tbsp
Baking Soda - 1 tsp
Vanilla extract - 1 tsp
Plain yogurt - 1/2 cup (or 2 eggs)
Milk - 3/4 cup

Method

• Preheat oven at 375 F. Grease and flour a 9" pan or a tube pan.
• Sift all dried ingredients together.
• Mix the wet ingredients first, and add the dried ones gradually, till smooth batter.  
• Pour in a greased and floured pan.
• Bake at 375F in a preheated oven for 20 - 25 mins, till toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.
• Let it cool completely before icing/ consuming. 

Tips - I added a pinch of salt and a teaspoon of instant coffee. Once cooled, I drizzled a bit of coke/ pepsi on the cake, to keep it moist for longer. Its optional though.

Khushi's Eggless Chocolate Cake

Bon Apetit!
Hetal from Houston