Baking Challenge December

I tripled the recipe and made it a round large cake - originally I think it should be the shape of a wooden log :D

Sorry for just copying the recipe - I seriously doesn't have the time to make it myself...

French Yule Log by Flore of Florilège Gourmand

There are six components to the yule log which can be made over the course of 3 days. DAY 1: praline feuillete and crème brûlée
praline feuillete (preparation time: 10 min)
3.5 oz. (100g) milk chocolate

1. 1  2/3 tablespoons (25g) butter
   
2. 2  tablespoons (1 oz./30g) praline (I used hazelnut butter with 1 tsp sugar added)
   

1 oz. rice krispies or corn flakes or Special K

• Melt the chocolate and butter in a double boiler.
  
• Add the praline and the coarsely crushed lace crepes. Mix quickly to thoroughly coat with the
  chocolate.
  
• Spread between two sheets of wax paper to a size slightly larger than your desired shape.
  
• Refrigerate until hard.
  vanilla crème brûlée (preparation time: 15min + 1h infusing + 1h baking)
  Note: The vanilla crème brûlée can be flavored differently by simply replacing the vanilla with
  

something else e.g. cardamom, lavender, etc...

1/2 cup (115g) heavy cream (35% fat content) 1/2 cup (115g) whole milk
4 medium (72g) egg yolks
0.75 oz. (2 tbsps/25g) granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean

• Heat the milk, cream, and scraped vanilla bean to just boiling.
  
• Remove from the stove and let the vanilla infuse for about 1 hour.
  
• Whisk together the sugar and egg yolks (but do not beat until white).
  
• Pour the vanilla-infused milk over the sugar/yolk mixture. Mix well.
  
• Wipe with a very wet cloth and then cover your baking mold (whatever shape is going to fit
  on the inside of your Yule log/cake) with parchment paper. [Jen's note: this doesn't work and
  I agree from past experience]
  
• Pour the cream into the mold and bake at 300°F for about 1-1.5 hours in a water bath or until firm on the edges and slightly wobbly in the center.
  
• Let cool and put in the freezer for at least 1 hour to firm up and facilitate the final assembly.
  

DAY 2: dacquoise, ganache and mousse
dacquoise biscuit (almond cake) (preparation time: 10 min + 15 min for baking)
equipment: 2 mixing bowls, hand or stand mixer with whisk attachment, spatula, baking pan such as a 10”x15” jelly-roll pan, parchment paper.
Note: You can use the dacquoise for the bottom of your yule log only, or as bottom and top layers, or if using a yule log mold (half-pipe) to line your entire mold with the biscuit. Take care to spread the dacquoise accordingly. Try to bake the dacquoise the same day you assemble the log to keep it as moist as possible.
2.8 oz. (3/4 cup + 1 tbsp/80g) almond meal
1.75 oz. (1/2 cup/50g) confectioner’s sugar
2 tablespoons (15g) all-purpose flour
3.5 oz. (100g/100ml) about 3 medium egg whites
1.75 oz. (4 tbsp/50g) granulated sugar

• Finely mix the almond meal and the confectioner’s sugar. (If you have a mixer, you can use it
  by pulsing the ingredients together for no longer than 30 seconds).
  
• Sift the flour into the mix.
  
• Beat the eggs whites, gradually adding the granulated sugar until stiff.
  
• Pour the almond meal mixture into the egg whites and blend delicately with a spatula.
  
• Grease a piece of parchment paper and line your baking pan with it.
  
• Spread the batter on a piece of parchment paper to an area slightly larger than your desired
  shape (circle, long strip etc...) and to a height of 1/3 inches (8mm).
  
• Bake at 350°F (180°C) for approximately 15 minutes (depends on your oven), until golden.
  
• Let cool and cut to the desired shape.
  dark chocolate ganache (preparation time: 10min)
  

6 oz. dark chocolate, chopped
3 oz. heavy cream

• Place chocolate in a bowl.
  
• Heat the cream in a saucepan until just boiling.
  
• Remove from heat and pour over dark chocolate and let sit for a minute. Stir until smooth and
  silky.
  
• Pour onto parchment and let cool or set in a refrigerator.
  

dark chocolate mousse (preparation time: 15 min)
10.5 oz. bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped 2 large eggs, room temperature
5 large egg yolks, room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons water
2 cups heavy cream

• Melt the chocolate in a microwave at half power for 30 seconds at a time, stirry after every
  30 second interval until just melted.
  
• Pour chocolate in a bowl large enough to hold all ingredients and set aside until cooled to
  room temperature.
  
• Place eggs and yolks in a mixer with balloon whisk and whip for 1 minute.
  
• Put the sugar and water in a small saucepan and stir to moisten the sugar. Bring to a boil until
  temperature reaches 44°F (227°F for 8500 ft. elevation).
  
• Remove from heat.
  
• Start beating the eggs again on medium speed and slowly and steadily pour the sugar syrup,
  pouring down the center, not on the side of the bowl or on the whisk attachment. When all of the syrup is added, increase speed to high and beat until eggs pale, triple in volume, and cool to room temperature.
  
• In a large bowl, whip the heavy cream to medium peaks. Fold a quarter of the cream into the cooled chocolate. Fold in remaining cream, followed by egg mixture.
  
• Try not to deflate the batter too much. DAY 3: glaze
  dark chocolate icing (glaze) preparation time: 25 min (10 min if you don’t count softening the gelatin)
  Note: Because the icing gels quickly, you should make it at the last minute.
  Jen’s Note: I made twice as much as the amount listed below.
  4g or 1/2 tbsp powdered gelatin or 2 sheets gelatin 1/4 cup (60g) heavy cream (35% fat content)
  2.1 oz. (5 tbsps/60g) granulated sugar
  1/4 cup (50g) water
  1/3 cup (30g) unsweetened cocoa powder
  

• Soften the gelatin in cold water (about 1/4 cup of water for 1 tablespoon of powdered gelatin) for 15 minutes.
  
• Boil the rest of the ingredients and cook an additional 3 minutes after boiling.
  
• Add gelatin to the chocolate mixture. Mix well.
  
• Pour through a fine sieve.
  
• Let cool while checking the texture regularly. As soon as the mixture is smooth and coats a
  spoon well (it is starting to gel), use immediately.
  ASSEMBLY
  Note: You will want to tap your mold gently on the counter top after each time you pipe mousse in
  to get rid of any air bubbles.
  

• Line your mold or pan with rhodoid (clear hard plastic, I usually use transparencies cut to the desired shape, it’s easier to find than cellulose acetate which is what rhodoid translates to in English) OR plastic film. Rhodoid will give you a smoother shape but you may have a hard time using it depending on the kind of mold you’re using.
  
• Pipe one third of the mousse component into the mold.
  
• Take the crème brûlée insert out of the freezer at the last minute and set on top of the
  mousse.
  
• Press down gently to slightly ensconce it in the mousse.
  
• Pipe second third of the mousse component around and on top of the crème brûlée.
  
• Cut the feuillete to a size slightly smaller than your mold so that it can be surrounded by
  mousse.
  
• Lay it on top of the mousse you just piped into the mold.
  
• Pipe the last third of the mousse component on top of the feuillete.
  
• Freeze for a few hours to set.
  
• Take out of the freezer.
  
• Pipe the ganache onto the frozen mousse leaving a slight edge so that ganache doesn’t seep
  out when you set the dacquoise on top.
  
• Close with the dacquoise.
  
• Freeze OVER NIGHT.
  
• Unmold the cake/log/whatever and set on a wire rack over a shallow pan.
  

• Cover the cake with the icing.
  
• Let set.
  
• Return to the freezer.
  
• Decorate.
  
• Transfer to the refrigerator no longer than 1/2 hour before serving as it may start to melt quickly.
• 
  
• 

Cupcakes free from gluten and dairy...

Fluffy gluten free cupcakes w/ blueberry frosting - 200°C - about 10 min
   

Ingredients:
2 large eggs
3 dl (180g) gluten free flour mix
2 dl  (180g) sugar
50 g oil 
1 dl  (100g) water
2 tsp baking powder

Instruktions:

Separate the eggs, put the yolks in one bowl and the whites in another. Pour the sugar in the bowl with the yolk and stir until they have blended nicely. Mix the baking powder with the gluten free flour and pour it in the bowl with the yolk-sugar mix. Pour the oil and the water in the bowl whilst stirring. Whisk the egg whites stiff and gently mix the whites in the rest of the batter. Put the batter in cupcakes liners and in the middle of the oven at 200°C for about 10 minutes.

Blueberry "butter"-cream

150 g soft dairy free butter

3 dl  (180g) icing sugar

about 0,5 dl (50g)  boiling water

1 Tsp vanilla sugar

A lot of blueberries

Whisk the ingredients together until you have a smooth frosting :)

Pataquetas Baking Partner Challenge

I’m glad to present this traditional bread from Valencia, known at least since the Seventeenth Century. The Pataqueta, diminutive for "pataca" has the shape of a crescent Moon. This is the bread the inhabitants of the Valencia’s Orchard used to eat when they went to work. It was firstly baked in the Moorish oven they have in their Barraca and then in wood stoves.
Nowadays, it is not frequently baked and people book it in advance to get one. “Pataquetas” are usually baked for our main important festival, “Fallas”. Most of Valencia’s bakers are asked to bake “pataquetas” every year in March.

Ingredients:

For the ferment:

You will need
100 ml water
50 g allpurpose flour
12.5 g fresh yeast / 5g or 1 ½ tsp Instant yeast / 6.25g or 2tsp active dry yeast
1/2 teaspoon sugar

Bread dough:

You will need
450 g/3 cup all purpose flour
200 ml tepid water
10 g/1 ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
all the ferment
a little flour for dusting the work surface and the bread.

Directions
Ferment
Stir the yeast into the water in your mixing bowl, then add the flour and sugar and mix well. Cover with plastic film.
Put into the fridge overnight or up to 48 hours.

Bread dough
- Keeping the ferment in its bowl, add the rest of the ingredients except the salt, and mix together with your scraper.
- When everything starts to come together into dough, turn it out onto your work surface (don’t flour it first).
- Start to work the dough for about 10 minutes, then add the salt and continue kneading until smooth and elastic. In this process, I’ve used my bread machine.( You can also knead by hand or use stand mixer)

 - Divide dough into 150 g pieces and then form the dough into small balls, cover with a baking cloth and leave to rest for 20 minutes or until them double in size.

 - Flatten with the palm of the hand, putting more pressure on the edges of the dough to get a rounded shape.

 - Then with a sharp knife or baker scraper make a cut in and cut open from the outside. Flatten the ball and mark the cut above.

 - Place them on a baking tray and cover them again with a kitchen cloth dusted with flower.

- Leave to rest until them double in size, for about 1 hour.

- Preheat the oven to 200º C / 392 F

 - Make two cuts on the bottom before baking.

- Sprinkle a little fine flour using a sieve or strainer.

- Bake with steam, 30 minutes at 200 °C / 392 F

- Cool on a wire rack.


How to shape Pataquetas

Moist quadrupel chocolate mini cupcakes :D

A lot of my friends LOOOOOOOVE chocolate, so I had to make a special treat just for them - and this is the end result...

The cake is easy-one-bowl-chocolate-cupcakes
I made a hole in the middle and stuffed the already moist cake with chocolate sauce
Then I made a chocolate buttercream frosting
And finally decorated with some chocolate chips

So - chocolate in the cake, the cake filling, the frosting AND the decorations :)

Carolina's 12th birthday

The daughter of one of my friends turned 12 the other day and she wanted me to make her cake *proud*
How and what is tasted wasn't as important as how it looked - she wanted it to be gorgeous :D
She likes scrapbooking so that was the theme I chose :)

Vanilla cake base
Pear mousse
After Eight cream
Iced with pear buttercream
Covered with sugarpaste

I have never made a cake with that much sugarpaste - but there is a first for everything ;)
I used a lot of different cutters, a lot of different molds, a lot of pearls in different colours, a lot of spray colours and a lot of sugarpaste :D

Viktor's 18th birthday...

Viktor turned 18 a couple of days ago, and his parents wanted him to have a cake that had something to do with him turning 18 and at that time you can get your driver license in Sweden...
I'm not good at all, when it comes to modelling figures, so I put a toy car on top of the cake :) - with a road and a "no-no" over the two smashed cars :)

White vanilla cake base, filled with
Raspberry candy fluff
Vanilla custard/whipped cream
Buttercream around it, and
covered with colored sugarpaste

Baking Challenge september - Kronut

Kronut - baking partner challenge september

I have tried making Kronuts (something I have never heard of before). The original is from New York, the man who invented it has even trademarked the original name "Cronut"
I did the recipe suggested to me (with help from my mum - because I didn't have the time to make all the steps on my own)

Kronuts
Makes around 16 big ones, we made about 30 smaller ones

Ingredients

For dough
 510grams all purpose flour more for dusting the work table
7g salt
100g sugar
150g milk (I used 1.5% milk)
2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
2 jumbo eggs (If you are using large eggs use 3)
50g butter

For butter layer
300grams butter

For frying
Canola oil:  2-4 cups
Water: 200 g for brushing on the top
Cinnamon sugar (400g sugar and 100 g cinnamon)

Directions
Make the dough on day number ONE
Incorporate the butter into the dough on day number TWO
Fry the dough on day number THREE

DAY ONE
Making the dough:

30 minutes before starting making the dough, take out butter and eggs from the fridge, in order to make them room temperature. Combine the dry ingredients (flour, salt, instant active yeast) in a mixer bowl.

Microwave the milk on high for 30 seconds and add butter in order to make the butter melt properly.
Add the butter-milk mixture to the dry mixture. Mix on low speed for about 3 minutes, and then on higher speed for another 8 minutes (don't do like I did, use the proper dough "whisk", which I forgot :S)Then to the dry mixture add butter milk mixture and eggs. Mix on low speed for 3 minutes, or until everything is incorporated. Mix on higher speed for another 8 minutes.

Remove the dough from the mixer bowl form a ball by tucking the edges on the dough. Coat another bowl with any oil of your choice and place the dough in it with seams down. Use a knife to cut a cross into top surface (this will help the dough relax). Cover tightly with clear plastic wrap on top the bowl, making sure it is in not contact with the dough (spray the inside of the plastic wrap with oil too, just in case :)).
Place dough in a warm area and allow it to double in size. This takes about 60 minutes. Once dough has doubled in size transfer the bowl to refrigerator overnight.


DAY TWO
Start incorporating the butter into the dough.

Cut the cold butter 295g lengthwise into 1/2-inch-thick slabs. Arrange the pieces on a piece of parchment or waxed paper, so they can form a 5- to 6-inch square (when you are done rolling), cutting the butter crosswise as necessary to fit. Top with another piece of parchment or waxed paper. With a rolling pin, pound the butter with light, even strokes. As the pieces begin to adhere, use more force. Pound the butter until it’s about 4 x 6 inches square and then trim the edges of the butter. Put the trimmings on top of the square and pound them in lightly with the rolling pin. Place in refrigerator to cool for at least 2 hours.

Laminate the dough
Unwrap and lay the dough on a lightly floured work surface. Roll into a 10-1/2-inch square. Brush excess flour off the dough. Remove the butter from the refrigerator. If it's not cold enough, refrigerate a bit longer. Unwrap and place the butter on the dough so that the points of the butter square are centered along the sides of the dough. Fold one flap of dough over the butter toward you, stretching it slightly so that the point just reaches the center of the butter. Repeat with the other flaps. Then press the edges together to completely seal the butter inside the dough. (A complete seal ensures butter won’t escape.).

1st turn
Lightly flour the top and bottom of the dough. With the rolling pin, firmly press the dough to elongate it slightly and then begin rolling instead of pressing, focusing on lengthening rather than widening the dough and keeping the edges straight. Turn the dough so that a shorter end faces you. Roll to expand the length of the dough, making sure that the dough doesn’t stick to the table. Add flour if needed. When you have a rectangle about 21 x 9 inches, fold the top third of the rectangle down and fold the bottom third up to cover it. Turn the dough 90 degrees so that the opening resembles a book.
 2nd Turn.
Try to do this turn right away, but if the dough is too warm, wrap in film and place in the refrigerator until it cools. Repeat rolling, just like the first turn, then turn 90 degrees and gently press two fingers into the lower right corner to mark the number of turns. (Marking the dough allows you to track your progress, and ensure that the orientation of the dough is correct when you remove it from the refrigerator.) Cover the dough in a parchment paper and then again with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
3rd Turn.
The dough will be hard, so gently pound the dough to warm the butter. If it is too cold the butter will separate and not spread as it should. Repeat the previous steps, and turn again, marking the corner with three fingerprints. Cover dough with parchment paper and plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
4th Turn. 
Make the final turn, repeating the steps from turns 1-3. Refrigerate overnight
DAY THREE
Frying
 Roll out the Dough. Lightly dust a work surface with flour and roll out the dough to approximately the size of a sheet pan, 1/2 inch thick. Make sure the dough stays cold, without sticking to the surface. If it starts to stick, place in the refrigerator and roll again when cool. Transfer to a sheet pan with parchment paper, film and chill before use.

Punching out Kronuts. Prepare a sheet pan with parchment paper, sprayed with PAM or oil . Remove dough from fridge and take two ring molds, approximately  outer molds should be 3 ½ inch and inner should be 1 ½ inch (I made them a lot smaller though) Only start punching if the dough is very cold. Otherwise, your Kronut won’t fry like you want it to.
 Transfer half of the punched Kronuts to the sheet pan, leaving room for kronuts to raise a bit.
Brush tops of the Kronut with water and set aside.  Place Kronut holes on the same sheet tray, leaving enough space for them to raise without sticking to each other. Leave in a warm area until they have raised, about 30 min.

Once it is raised,  keep it in the refrigerator for 1 hour or in the freezer for 15 minutes before frying.

 Frying Kronuts. 
Heat canola oil in a pot, about 3 inches high. Test oil with a pinch of flour: if flour foams it is ready for deep frying. Turn heat to low and place Kronuts in oil, 1-2 at a time, in order to avoid overcrowding the pot. Turn and flip Kronuts often so that they brown evenly.
 Once golden brown throughout, test one to see if it is cooked all the way through. Remove and place on paper towels.
Now is a good time to prepare the Glaze
Once it is no longer shiny transfer to a container with sugar and cinnamon and toss.
Enjoy

(I stuffed the Kronuts with vanilla custard and did not use a Glaze (but I will the next time))
Next time I will also try this with the dough that is used to make "danish pastry" - because that dough only takes one day to prepare :)

Important notes to Remember
Don’t overwork the dough with too much kneading,
Don’t overwork the butter, if butter starts to leaking, try to put it back in the refrigerator.
Flour the area well so that the dough won’t stick
Heat oil in medium temperature and fry the Kronuts in low temperature otherwise the outside becomes too dark to soon and the inside won’t cook properly.
Filling and glaze  - find your favourite :)

For pastry cream and filling, suggested by Cinnamon spice and everything nice

Pastry cream is one of the building blocks of a great dessert. Delicious as is, it can also be flavored in an almost infinite number of ways to create the perfect touch for your cake, pie, or pastry. Make sure you have all of your ingredients and equipment on hand before you begin; once the egg yolks begin to cook, they won't wait for you to find your strainer! This base recipe calls for 1/2 cup of sugar, which makes a pastry cream that's just barely sweet. If you're planning to use the pastry cream for a pie filling and you want it to be sweeter, increase the sugar to 3/4 cup.

Pastry Cream

3 cups whole milk
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract or Vanilla Crush; or 1/2 vanilla bean, slit lengthwise
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 tablespoon King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
4 large egg yolks
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
1 cup heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks

Directions

1) In a medium-sized saucepan, stir together 2 1/2 cups of the milk, the sugar, salt, and the vanilla bean. (If you're using vanilla extract or Vanilla Crush, add it at the end.) Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar.

2) Meanwhile, whisk the cornstarch, flour, and egg yolks with the remaining 1/2 cup milk.

3) Whisk some of the hot milk mixture with the egg yolks to temper them. This keeps the yolks from turning to scrambled eggs when you add them to the simmering milk.

4) Pour the egg/milk mixture back into the remaining simmering milk. Doing this through a strainer will help prevent lumps later. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly with a whisk, until the mixture thickens.

5) Remove from the heat and strain through a fine sieve. Stir in the butter and vanilla extract (if you're using it). If you're going to flavor the pastry cream with chocolate or some other flavor, this is the time to do it (see variations below).

6) Rub a piece of butter over the surface of the cream, top with a piece of plastic wrap (make sure it touches the top of the pastry cream so it doesn't develop a skin), then refrigerate until cool.

7) To complete, fold the whipped cream into the cooled pastry cream.

Variations:

Butterscotch Pastry Cream: Add 1/4 teaspoon butter-rum flavor and/or 1 cup (6 ounces) butterscotch chips to the pastry cream after straining, stirring until the chips have melted.

Caramel Pastry Cream: Add 3/4 cup chopped caramel (7 1/2 ounces, or 21 to 23 unwrapped individual caramels) to the hot, strained pastry cream, stirring until melted and the mixture is smooth.

Chocolate Pastry Cream: Add 1 cup (6 ounces) chopped chocolate to the hot, strained pastry cream, stirring until melted and the mixture is smooth.

Hazelnut Pastry Cream: Omit the butter and increase the sugar to 3/4 cup (5 1/4 ounces). Add 3/4 cup (8 1/4 ounces) praline paste to the hot, strained pastry cream, stirring until combined.

Orange Pastry Cream: Increase the sugar to 3/4 cup (5 1/4 ounces). Add 1 teaspoon orange extract; 1/4 teaspoon orange oil; or 3 tablespoons orange zest to the hot, strained pastry cream.

Peanut Butter Pastry Cream: Add 3/4 cup (7 1/4 ounces) smooth peanut butter to the hot pastry cream, stirring until melted and the mixture is smooth. If you're using a natural or freshly-made peanut butter, omit the butter from the recipe, or the pastry cream will be greasy.

Pistachio Pastry Cream: Omit the butter and increase the sugar to 3/4 cup (5 1/4 ounces). Add 3/4 cup (8 1/4 ounces) pistachio paste, or blanched pureed pistachio meats.

Glazes from King Arthur Flour

Easy Vanilla Glaze

1 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar or glazing sugar, sifted to remove any lumps
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 to 2 tablespoons milk or water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Chocolate Glaze

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Apple Cider Glaze

2 tablespoons bottled boiled cider
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 cup confectioners' or glazing sugar

Directions

1) To make the vanilla glaze: Stir the ingredients together, adding extra liquid or confectioners' sugar to adjust the consistency as needed. Yield: about 1/2 cup glaze.

2) To make chocolate glaze: Melt the ingredients together over low heat or in the microwave, stirring often. Add extra corn syrup if needed to make a smooth, shiny glaze. Yield: about 1/2 cup glaze.

3) To make apple cider glaze: Stir all of the ingredients together, adding additional sugar or cream if needed to make the glaze the consistency of molasses. Dip top of doughnuts in glaze, or drizzle glaze over doughnuts. Yield: about 1/2 cup glaze.

Nonpareils...

So... It has been a while, but I have not quit baking (I just don't have enough hours in one day ;))

KlaraForm had some nonpareil sprinkles that she did not have the time to use, so on their Facebook page they gave some away - I was fortunate enough to get black nonpareils :) My plans were to use them around macaroons - but I failed miserably this time, so I had to change my mind :)

So I mixed them with silver sprinkles and used them on top of the cupcakes... My son turned 6 and he had a Ninjago cake (pics and recipe later) and One bowl chocolate cupcakes with marshmallow filling and vanilla buttercream frosting... There is also a picture of the Ninjago macaroon that failed...

Long time, no see :)

Hi there

Been quite busy lately, w/ both baking and other stuff - but I have not had the strength nor the will to blog about it... But here it comes :)

Triple vanilla cupcakes - about 48 mini cupcakes - 160°C about 14 minutes

4 eggs
3 dl sugar
a pinch of salt
3 dl cake flour
1.5 tsp baking powder
1.5 dl sour cream
80g melted butter
1 Tsp vanilla extract

Mix the dry ingredients. Mix in the eggs and the sour cream, and then add vanilla and butter. Mix it all together and pour the mix into muffin cups, and in the oven, until a toothpick comes out clean :)

When the cupcakes have cooled of, make a hole in the middle of the cupcake w/ for example a spoon. Fill the hole w/ home made vanilla custard

Simple vanilla custard recipe

Then top it all w/ vanilla buttercream :)

115g softed butter
250g icing sugar
2 tsp boiling water
vanilla extract (as much as you want to :))

Whip together butter and icing sugar until it is light and fluffy, then gradually add the boiling water and finally the vanilla flavouring

• 
  

Baking Partner Challenge July :) Russian Honey Cake

So - it hasn't been a lot of postings on the blog... Summer and head ache has come in the way :)

Anyway, I'm glad to say that I am a part of the "Baking Partners"... A new challenge each month. I was supposed to post this months challenge on the 15th - but better late than never - right?!

RUSSIAN HONEY CAKE

For the Filling: Dulce de leche (Can be prepared in advance)

2 cans condensed milk (you will use  1 1/2 cans)

10 oz (300 g) unsalted butter, cut into large chunks

1.     Put the cans of condensed milk in a medium saucepan.

2.     Add enough water to cover the cans completely.

3.     Bring to a boil, then simmer over medium heat for 2 hours, adding more hot water to cover the cans as necessary.

4.     Remove from the heat. Let the cans sit in the water for about 5 minutes, then drain the water and set the cans aside. DO NOT OPEN THE CAN AT THIS POINT, or they will explode and their contents will end up all over you. Allow the cans to cool to room temperature, then open them with a can opener.

5.     Put the butter in a  mixing bowl. With a mixer,  beat until the butter is fluffy, about 5 minutes. Continue to beat, gradually adding 1  1/2  can condensed milk and beat until you obtain a smooth cream.

6.     Do not overbeat or the cream will curdle.

7.     Place the cream in the refrigerator while you prepare the dough.

For the Dough:

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

3 tablespoons honey

3.5 oz (100 g) unsalted butter, cut into chunks

1 teaspoon baking soda

3-3.5 cups all-purpose flour

You will need a double boiler to prepare the dough. If you don’t have one, use two regular saucepans or a saucepan and a heat-proof mixing bowl as I usually do and as described in the recipe.

1.     Put the eggs and sugar in a heat-proof mixing bowl (or the top of a double boiler). Stir to mix. Add the honey and butter.

2.     Fill a medium saucepan with water and bring it to a boil. Place the mixing bowl on the saucepan. Remember - the bowl should not touch the water in the pan, so adjust the amount of water accordingly. Maintaining a gentle boil, cook the mixture, stirring constantly with a spoon or a balloon whisk, until the ingredients are well blended and the mixture is smooth, about 5 minutes.

3.     Add the baking soda, and cook, stirring constantly, for another half a minute. The mixture will somewhat whiten and increase in bulk.  Remove the bowl from the heat.

4.     Gradually add 3 cups of the flour to the mixture, mixing with a spoon with each addition, until you obtain dough that is somewhat sticky and has consistency of play dough.

5.     Do not be tempted to add more flour as the dough will harden as it cools off.

6.     If it is still too sticky, add the rest of the flour. Otherwise leave it at 3 cups

7.     Divide the dough into 5 parts and shape each part into a ball.

Bake the biscuits

1.     Preheat the oven to 375F (190C). Generously butter a large baking sheet

2.     Now, take one dough ball and put it in the middle of your buttered baking sheet. With your fingers, press onto the dough and flatten it into a thin 11-inch (28 cm) circle. If the dough sticks to your hands, dip your fingers in flour before pressing onto the dough. The flattened dough may appear somewhat transparent in some places - it is OK. But take care not to tear it and patch with a piece of dough if you do. NOTE: You can shape your cake as a rectangle or square, if you want to.

3.     Since you will need some crumbs for the top and the sides of the cake, you do not have to worry about the irregularities around the edges of the circle - you will cut them off to obtain a perfect circle after the biscuit  has been baked and you will use the trim-offs to make crumbs.

Or

4.     instead of cutting off the edges of a baked biscuit, you can use my hassle-free “beforehand trim-off” technique meaning once you’ve flattened the dough, put a 10-inch (25 cm) flat plate on top of it and using a sharp knife, trim off excess dough around the plate.

5.     Do  not remove the trim-offs from the baking sheet. Let them sit there. Once the biscuit is baked, you can easily peel them off.

6.     Bake each biscuit layer on the middle rack of the oven for 4-5 minutes, until it is light golden on top. The dough will slightly puff up, but don’t  expect it to rise as a sponge cake. Do not overbake. Remove from the oven, gently run a spatula underneath the biscuit to loosen it, then remove from the baking sheet.

7.     Repeat the process for all 5 layers.

STEP  4 - Assemble the cake

1.     Spread a generous amount of cream onto one biscuit, then top with another. Continue in this manner - stacking the layers on top of one another and spreading some cream in-between. Slather some cream on top and around the cake as well.

2.     Finely grind the baked trim-offs. Sprinkle the crumbs generously on top of the cake and lightly press some around it.

3.      If you do not have enough crumbs, grind some walnuts and mix with the crumbs. At this point, the cake will be hard. Leave the cake aside to soften at room temperature for 6 hours or overnight. The biscuits will have absorbed the cream and the cake will be soft and ready to melt in your mouth.