Outrageous Brownies

These delicious brownies by Ina Garten  are one of the most popular recipe available online. With 500 reviews and most of them positive , I had to make them. My friends were coming over this weekend , so I thought what better occasion than this .The brownie uses a lot of butter , so it can only be indulged in once in a long while. According to the reviews, these taste better when kept refrigerated overnight and should be served  after refrigeration only. Also, they cut better upon refrigeration. I have only made half the amount mentioned in the original recipe.

Outrageous Brownies

Ingredients

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1/2 pound  plus 6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips, divided
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate
3 extra-large eggs
1.5 tablespoons instant coffee powder (I used 1 tbsp and it was sufficient)
1 tablespoon real vanilla extract
1 cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, divided
1½ teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1.5 cups diced walnut pieces (I used 1 cup)

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9×13 baking pan. (325 degrees if using a dark non-stick pan)
2. Melt together the butter, chocolate chips[1/2 pound], and unsweetened chocolate on top of a double boiler (I did this step in a glass dish in the microwave at 30 second intervals). Cool slightly.
3.  Stir together [Do not beat] the eggs, instant coffee, vanilla and sugar.
4.  Stir in the warm chocolate mixture and cool to room temperature.
5. Stir together the 1/2 cup flour, baking powder and salt.
6.  Add to cooled chocolate mixture. 
7. Toss the walnuts and 6 ounces chocolate chips with 2 tbsp flour to coat.Then add to the chocolate batter. Pour into prepared pan.
8. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until tester just comes out clean. Halfway through the baking, rap the pan against the oven shelf to allow air to escape from between the pan and the brownie dough. Do not overbake.
9.  Cool thoroughly, refrigerate well and cut into squares. Cut only after refrigeration. 

Recipe Source:Original Recipe:(Source: Ina Garten)  Half recipe by Brown eyed baker[Brown eyed baker]

Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Collar

I had been wanting to try my hand at the chocolate collar after recently noticing several birthday cakes in the cake shops having them. Chocolate decorations was the other thing I had been postponing trying.  So, when my sister came visiting from Delhi just few days after her birthday, it gave me a perfect opportunity to bake a belated birthday cake for her and at the same time try my hand at chocolate decorations. For the cake, I again used the same recipe as the  Tuxedo Cake which is currently my favorite chocolate cake base.I kept it simple this time with just 2 layers of cake with the sides and the insides filled with chocolate coffee ganache.

It was unfortunately a very hot Sunday in Mumbai when I made this chocolate collar, so the chocolate took a lot of time setting up. I tried to hasten the process by keeping it in the refrigerator for 30 secs which was a bad idea as the chocolate hardened in that short time. I had to apply a thin layer of melted chocolate to make it stick around the cake. Thankfully, it was not that hard that it couldn't take the round shape of the cake.

I am just sharing the recipe of how to make the collar, for the cake recipe, you can refer to Tuxedo Cake.

Ingredients

Cake, frosted and assembled.
White chocolate [ For making patterns, decorations]
Dark/milk chocolate
Parchment paper.

Method
Measure the Cake :
Determine the height and circumference of the cake. This needs to be done after the cake has been frosted , as frosting will increase both of them and we don't want our chocolate collar to fall short.

1. The height can be measured with a ruler/scale . You can either keep the height of the cake same as that of cake or add some more centimeters if you want to cover your cake with fruit toppings. 
2. The circumference can be measured using a thread/yarn.Wrap the thread loosely around the base of the cake and add an additional inch to ensure that there are no gaps when you wrap it around. 

Cut the Parchment Paper: 
As per the measurement , cut the parchment paper.

Make Chocolate Collar and Wrap around the cake

1. Melt both the chocolates separately. 
2. Fill the melted white chocolate in a piping bag and cut a small tip. 
3. Place the parchment paper on your work surface. Make a pattern with the white chocolate. Since this was my first time at chocolate decoration too, I used the simplest zigzag pattern.
4. Once the white chocolate is set completely, apply the dark chocolate over the entire parchment paper using an offset spatula.Spread evenly.
5. Leave the chocolate collar to set, so that it is sticky/pliant and is  not fully hard/brittle. This is the step where the Mumbai weather played a spoilsport.
6. Pick up the band and carefully put one end on the cake and press it to the frosting, wrapping it around the cake.
7. Transfer it to the refrigerator for  30 mins to get it completely set. Once it is set, peel the parchment paper. It comes off easily :)

A Special Cake for the Special Man - Tuxedo Cake

I  drool every time I look at this gorgeous cake  which I made last week, a special cake for the special man's birthday !! I get very few occasions to bake a celebration cake and usually I spend a lot of time searching and finalizing the cake to bake. I don't know how I came across this one, but one look and it was decided. With so little experience in baking cakes, I was not sure If I could replicate it exactly, But I am really proud the way it has turned out. Quite Close !!  I was working with the whipped cream too for the first time, so the fear was manifold. The whipping did give me lot of troubles, muscle aches, and the quantity went wrong and I had plenty of whipped cream left, but no complains after the way it looked and tasted :-)  Since the birthday was falling on a week day, I planned to make it over two days. The first day I made the cake, and the 2nd day I did the whipping and assembling.

By the way hidden besides all this whiteness is 4 layers of moist dark chocolate cake. And is called a Tuxedo Cake.

I am sharing the original recipe here though I made it by halving it. That gave me two 6" cakes, which I sliced into four , making it a 4 layered cake. As I mentioned above the quantity of whipped cream didn't work for me. I had halved the recipe for it too, but plenty was left, so I think 1/4th would have been enough . I also didn't have the corn syrup, so I made the ganache which I have earlier used in Bundt Cake.
I am also sharing the chocolate dipped strawberries recipe.

Ingredients:


For the cake:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 cups water
1 cup canola oil
4 cups sugar
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
4 cups all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 tbsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 tbsp. vanilla extract

For the frosting:
4 cups chilled heavy whipping cream
1¼ cups confectioners' sugar, sifted


For the Chocolate Strawberries:
10 even sized strawberries, washed and pat dried
3 oz. dark chocolate, finely chopped
some white chocolate


For the chocolate glaze:
4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
½ cup heavy whipping cream
¼ cup light corn syrup
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Preparation


For the Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line three 9-inch round cake pans (or two 10-inch round cake pans) with parchment paper.  Butter and flour the inside edges of the pan, shaking out the excess flour.  
2. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the butter, water and canola oil; heat until the butter is melted
3. In a large mixing bowl, combine the sugar, cocoa powder, and flour; whisk to blend.
4. Pour the melted butter mixture into the dry ingredients and whisk until smooth.
5. Whisk in the eggs one at a time, then whisk in the buttermilk.  Add the baking soda, salt and vanilla to the bowl and whisk just until incorporated.
6.  Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans.  Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. Let cool in the pans for 15 minutes.  Run a knife around the edge of each cake layer and invert onto a wire cooling rack.  Allow the cake layers to cool completely before frosting, at least 2 hours.

For the frosting

1.  Ensure that the bowl and the whisk of the electric mixer are chilled. This is for ensure the cream whips well.
2. Add the heavy cream to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment.  Whip on medium-high speed until soft peaks form.  Add the powdered sugar and continue to whip until thoroughly combined and stiff peaks form.  Be careful not to over-beat!

Assembling the cake

1. Place one cake layer on a cake platter and spread a layer of the whipped cream frosting over the top.  Top with a second cake layer, more frosting (and the third cake layer, if using).  Frost the top and sides of the assembled cake.  Refrigerate until the frosting has stabilized, at least 1 hour.

For the Chocolate Strawberries:

1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 
2. Melt the dark chocolate and stir it smooth. 
3. Hold the strawberries by stem and twist and swirl it in the melted chocolate.Take it out ,swirl and let excess chocolate drip. Place it on the parchment paper and refrigerate for 10-15 minutes for the chocolate to set
4. When the chocolate strawberries is set, melt white chocolate in a bowl. Put it in a piping bag. Cut the tip and make patterns over the strawberries

For the chocolate glaze:

1. Place the chocolate in a medium bowl.
2. Heat the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until simmering.  Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let sit 1-2 minutes.
3. Whisk until the mixture is smooth and homogeneous.  Blend in the corn syrup and vanilla.  Pour the glaze into a pitcher or measuring cup and let cool for 10 minutes.  (Do not let the glaze cool longer or it may become difficult to pour over the cake.)  
4. Slowly pour the glaze over the cake, ensuring that the top is covered and the glaze drips over the sides.
5. Place the chocolate dipped strawberries on the glaze immediately
6. Refrigerate the cake until the glaze is set and the whipped cream frosting is firm, at least 1 hour.  
7. For Serving Slice with a long, sharp knife, wiping the blade clean between slices.  

The Recipe is from Pastry Queen and Annie Eats. The chocolate strawberries is from numerous resources available on the web.

Chocolate Almond Biscotti

Biscotti are twice baked cakes, which are crispy and crunchy and can last for a longer time as they become dry due to baking it twice. I was exactly looking for something like this ,which could last longer, as for the first time I was parceling them to another city, to a friend.
It was about time i made something from the Dorie Greenspan's book which I had gifted to myself for my birthday few month's back :) For any baking , I usually go to the internet for reference. It makes me easier to follow a recipe which has review comments and suggestions incase someone faces a problem. This time , I didn't. Later on ,while slicing the biscotti after first bake , I faced an issue as it was crumbling. I think I almost had 1/3rd of them broken. I searched if others faced the same issue with the recipe and someone did face the same. That apart, these are delicious. My husband who is not so much a sweets person, is munching on the broken ones, while the good ones were packed and sent :)

Ingredients
[about 40 cookies]
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tbsp instant coffee or instant espresso powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
6 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped  roasted almonds 

4 oz bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped ( or 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips)
Sugar, for dusting

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350 F/176 C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Sift together the flour, cocoa, coffee powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
3. With a mixer, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed for about 2 minutes until pale.
4. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the eggs and vanilla; beat for another 2 minutes.
5. Decrease the speed to low and mix in the dry ingredients in 3 additions, mixing only until a dough forms. 
6. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix in the chopped nuts and chocolate chunks/chips.
7. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead a few times just to incorporate any dry ingredients that didn't get mixed in before. 
8. Divide into two portions ,shape each portion into a 12 x 2 inch log and 1/2 to 1 inch high. 
9. Place them on baking sheet,sprinkle the tops with a little sugar.
10. Bake for 25 minutes till they are slightly firm.Logs will spread and crack which is fine.
11. Remove the sheet from the oven and let it cool on a rack for 20 minutes. Then, with a very sharp, serrated knife, slice the logs into about 3/4 - 1 inch slices and leave the slices standing up on the baking sheet 
12. Return to the oven for another 10-15 minutes of baking.
13. Transfer biscotti to a rack to cool.

Linking it to Almond Event at Anu's healthy kitchen and cookeatdelicious

Frozen Chocolate Bananas

I have always wanted to make Chocolate Frozen Bananas when I first saw them. It was something very new for me and was surprised that it is even packaged and sold in shops abroad, just like ice creams. I have come closer to make them many times in past, but every time, by the time  I came out of laziness, the bananas would become overripe. Thankfully, not this time.  

I had also been wanting to try making colored sugar,which I did last night , to sprinkle it over the chocolate covered bananas. The sugar looked really nice, but when sprinkled over chocolate, most of it was sucked inside. The chocolate over the bananas freezes super fast, within seconds, so , in this case colored sugar was not a good idea. The other toppings I tried, was chocolate sprinkles and roasted almonds. I haven't yet tasted the chocolate sprinkles one, but the roasted almonds is super duper awesome. I would suggest everyone to try that. You can make them in different sizes , by cutting them accordingly. Having made them in smaller bite size too, I prefer the smaller version for ease of popping :)

Adapted from Epicurious.com

Ingredients

2 Ripe but firm bananas

6 oz dark chocolate

2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup roasted almonds, chopped

Preparation

1. Line a baking sheet or a plate with wax paper/parchment paper.
2. Cut the bananas in halves, or as per your wish. I also cut the tip of the bananas at both the ends. For bigger size bananas, insert an ice cream stick ,for smaller ones, you can use toothpicks. Place them on the baking sheet.
3. Freeze them uncovered from minimum 15 minutes. I read people freezing for more than that,overnight too. So, I increased the freezing time to 1 hour. It is important to keep them uncovered.
4. When the bananas are about to complete their freezing time,  start the preparation for chocolate coating.
5. Melt the chocolate with the oil  in the microwave  at 30 sec interval or in a half-full pan of simmering water (about 2 minutes). Stir until smooth.  
6. Take the bananas out of freezer and working quickly dip each banana piece in the chocolate, and quickly sprinkle with your topping . This has to be done very quickly as chocolate sets within seconds.
7.  The frozen bananas are ready to eat, right away. You can store them for 1 week, covered , in the freezer. If it is stored frozen, before serving, take out from freezer and keep in refrigerator for 20-30 minutes.

   
   

   I loved how the roasted almonds came out, so sharing the way I did too here. It is more for my reference when I do them again. :)

   
   

   How to roast Almonds in oven

   1. Preheat oven at 170C.
   2. Spread 1/4 cup almonds on an aluminum baking dish . Each almond should be spread evenly.
   3. Bake them for 18 minutes, turning them over at every 6 minutes.

   
   

Linking it to Almond Event at Anu's healthy kitchen and cookeatdelicious

Chocolate Truffles

I had some leftover chocolate ganache which I wanted to reuse . I had seen chocolate truffles on many blogs earlier, so that was the first thing that came to my mind. Truffles  are named as they resemble the truffle fungus and the cocoa coated truffles is the traditional way of making them to resemble the dirt on the fungus truffle. I had  initially thought of doing it the non traditional way, coating with melted chocolate and making some beautiful designs. I had my brother and his friend over at home, so to make something sweet and quick , I went ahead with cocoa coating. The first bite was unimaginably bitter, I had never tasted so much of cocoa and was a bit naive to expect something else instead of bitterness. However subsequent bites was into the chocolate heaven. Good quality chocolate needs to be used for truffles, and you can add flavours ,spices like cinnamon and  nuts of your choice too.
Since I had reused the ganache which was already referigerated , it was quick for me. But if you are doing it for scratch, you would need to wait for few hours for the ganache to become firm enough to form into balls.

Ingredients
For 30-40 truffles
Ganache
1 cup or  8 oz of semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate , chopped
1/2 cup of heavy cream
You can add any of these flavours to the ganache
Cinnamon and cardamon
Almond extract
Coffee/espresso powder
Citrus zest [ lemon/orange
 You can add any of these Truffles Coatings
Cocoa powder
Finely chopped roasted nuts walnuts/almonds/hazelnuts
White or dark melted chocolate coating
Toasted grated cocout
Chocolate shavings

Preparation

1. In a small, heavy saucepan bring the cream to a  boil.
2. Stir in any of the flavors that you want.
3. If the chocolate is too hard, melt it in microwave. Pour the cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for a few minutes then stir until smooth. This is called Ganache.
4. Let it cool and then refrigerate it for two hours.
5. Once it is firm enough, scoop out 1 tbsp of firmed ganache ,roll it into balls with your hands. and immediately roll them over the coating of your choice. 
6. Place it on a parchment paper and refrigerate till you are ready to serve.

Cups of Sunshine - Chocolate and Carrots

You can not only lick these cups but EAT it too as it is made of chocolate

What should I say about this !! This is as delicious as it looks. I have been wanting to make chocolate cups for sometime but didn't want to fill it with usual icecream or fruits filling. I thought why not to Indianise it and serve it with something Indian. So here it is , a fusion of the great Indian Carrot dessert  gajar halwa and chocolates.I had the visual in mind , which looked very very attractive and thankfully it tasted extremely delicious too.

I had very less amount of chocolates in my pantry, so the cups were thinner. It had to be eaten immediately as the chocolate would melt very soon. So, I suggest in the recipe below to have a thicker cup.

 

Ingredients

[for 4-5]

For Chocolate Cups

1 cup Dark semisweet chocolate,chopped

Cupcake liners

For Carrot Stuffing

2 cups Carrot, grated

2 cups Milk

1/4 cup Sugar

a pinch Cardamom powder

7-8 Cashewnuts, halved

6-10 Raisins [optional]

1 tbsp Clarified butter/ghee

Preparation

For Chocolate Cups

1. Line the cupcake pan with cupcake liners. If you are using thin liners use 3 liners for each to have a thicker base.
2. Melt chocolate in top of double boiler over simmering water, stirring until smooth.  
3. Spoon 1 tablespoon of melted chocolate into each paper liner. Brush the inside of the cupcake liners to coat evenly. Freeze until chocolate firms for about 30 minutes. 
4. Melt the leftover chocolate again and reapply a second coat using the same method  Freeze until completely set, about 1 hour. 
5. Once set, peel the cupcake liners.Whenever you feel that chocolate is melting, refreeze it. It can be made a day in advance and needs to be refrigerated covered.

 For Carrot Stuffing 

1. Boil milk in a pan till it reduces to almost half. Keep stirring often so that it doesn't burn at the bottom of the pan.Keep aside. 
2. Heat ghee in a separate pan. Roast the cashew and raisin in it and take it out and keep aside. Add grated carrots to the ghee and stir fry for 7-8 minutes. 
3. Add milk and cook until the milk dries. When all the milk is soaked up, add sugar and cardamom powder. This will release some moisture. Cook till it dries up completely. Add raisins and cashewnuts.  Take out and when it cools, refrigerate it covered.

Assembling

Once the carrot stuffing cools, Fill the chocolate cups with it in form of heaps. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Sending this to the "Veggie/Fruit of the Month - Carrot" Event by Priya and Revathi

Chocolate Banana Cupcakes

As promised, I am here with the recipe for the Chocolate Banana Cupcakes. It had been a long time since I had sent my baked goodies to my Husband's office. So I decided to make these cupcakes for them. The feedback was tremendous. My husband was asked if I delivered to home too, or if  I needed a shop. :-D
I got the recipe from tasteofhome. It was a plain banana cake to which I added chocolate. These are best when served fresh within few hours. It was great fun decorating these too..I made the flowers too ..3 flowers on each cupcake , around 60 flowers :))

Ingredients
[20 mini cupcakes]
1/2 cup shortening [ I didn't have shortening, used 1/2 cup butter + 3-4 tbsp vegetable oil)
1-1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup mashed ripe bananas
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa
3/4 cup dark chocolate ,melted
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup buttermilk

Chocolate Ganache 
8 oz Dark Chocolate
4 oz Cream

Directions

• In a large bowl, cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in bananas and vanilla.
• Sieve the flour, baking soda, cocoa,baking powder and salt in a separate bowl.
• Add the dry ingredients to wet mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating well after each addition.Fold in melted chocolate.
• Fill paper-lined  cupcake tin two-thirds full. Bake at 375F/190C for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely. 
• For Ganache, melt chocolate and whisk it smooth. Heat cream and add to melted chocolate. Stir till smooth. Add more cream, to reach to required consistency.  Dip the top of cupcakes into the ganache. Sprinkle some decorations and let it set in refrigerator for 30 minutes for the ganache to set.

I am sending these to following events.
 Healing Foods - Banana event by Siri hosted by Kirti 
Bookmarked Recipes - Every Tuesday event by Aipi & Priya.
Hearth and Soul Hop

Six Months of SinFoodie

I completely forgot that I completed six months of blogging yesterday. And I remembered only a few minutes back. It was by chance that I made these banana chocolate cupcakes yesterday. Here is to celebrate the Six month anniversary.  I never thought I will be able to sustain for so long. But ,It has been for you lovely readers,silent ones too who have motivated me to keep going. Your comments, site visit counts all mean so much to me.

The recipe will follow some other day. :D:D

Sinful Chocolate Espresso Brownies

The recipe for this brownie is one of the most famous recipes online. And I must say these brownies are one  of the richest chocolate brownies I have tasted.  It is absolutely sinful. This was part of the baked goodies that I made for my niece and nephew. The photograph has been taken in a hurry as it was around 2 at night and I had an early morning flight to catch. I was too tired to do any lighting or plating and I just clicked them as I didn't want to miss putting the recipe of this delicious,brownie on the blog. This recipe is a keeper and I am surely going to make them again.

One of the mistakes I did while making these was not using the correct size pan. I had initially thought to bake them in 2 batches as I have only one square pan which is smaller than the 9*13 inch pan mentioned in the original recipe . To save time, I discarded the idea of doing 2 batches and poured the entire batter in my smaller pan. I didn't mind having them twice the original size. But what I didn't anticipate was that the baking time would almost be the same if  I had done them in 2 batches. And even after the increased baking time , some portion at the centre was still goey. I finally had to give up trying to get the centre ones baked as I was afraid I wouldn't get up on time if I spent more time on baking, There was hardly 3 hours left for sleeping.
Anyways, as long as it ends well, all the agony that one goes through to reach it, is forgotten. Everyone absolutely loved these brownies. And I learned a new lesson in baking that "Size does matter" :-D


Here is the recipe from Brown Eyed Baker.

Ingredients
[24 brownies]

1 & 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp dark unsweetened cocoa powder
1& 1/3 cup (11 ounces) dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 tsp instant espresso powder
1& 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
5 eggs, at room temperature
2 tsp vanilla extract


Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 350F/176C . Butter the sides and bottom of a 9×13-inch glass or light-colored baking pan and line with parchment paper.Let the parchment paper overhang so that it is easy to pull the brownies when baked.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt, and cocoa powder together.Keep aside
3. Put the chocolate, butter and instant espresso powder in a large bowl and set it over a saucepan of simmering water, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate and butter are completely melted and smooth. Turn off the heat, but keep the bowl over the water and add the sugars. Whisk until completely combined, then remove the bowl from the pan.
4. When the chocolate mixture comes to room temperature, Add 3 eggs to it and whisk until combined. Add the remaining 2 eggs and whisk until combined. Add and mix the vanilla . Do not overbeat the batter at this stage or your brownies will be cake-like.
5. Add the flour mixture over the chocolate mixture. Using a rubber spatula (not a whisk), fold the flour mixture into the chocolate until just a bit of the flour mixture is visible.
6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of the brownies comes out with a few moist crumbs sticking to it. Increase the baking time if center is not done
7. Let the brownies cool completely, then lift them out of the pan using the parchment paper. Cut into squares and serve.

Chocolate Chunk Cookies

What makes this cookie special is the generous amount of  chocolate chunks. Chocolate chips cookies always leave me wanting for more chocolate. Replace it with chocolate chunks and it  perfectly satisfies all my chocolate cravings. Though, I must say this wasn't my most favourite cookie, but it works well as a simple cookie to have with a cup of milk ,coffee or tea . My cookie standards have been set high after having baked the Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie  and the Nutella Pinwheel Cookies and I  inadvertently start comparing any cookies that I make with them. So,  this one fell short to those standards, but still if you are looking for simple chocolate chunk cookies, this is quite good. And being made up of Wheat Flour, it will lessen some of your guilt too :)

Ingredients
For 12 -15 cookies
[Inspired from Scandilicious].

1 and 3/4th cups Whole wheat Flour
1/2 tsp Baking  soda
1/2 tsp salt
180 gms Butter melted
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp sugar powdered
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
170gm dark chocolate  chopped into chunks.

 Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 155C. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and keep aside.
2. In a medium bowl sieve the flour, baking soda and salt together.Mix well so that baking soda is distributed well.
3. Melt butter.whisk using the electric whisk ,melted butter and the sugars until creamy.
4. Add the eggs and vanilla to the mixture. Whisk again and then add the flour. Keep beating for some time stretch those gluten strands.
5. Add the chocolate chunks and fold in. The cookie dough should feel almost dry now.Mix well to spread the chocolate chunks evenly.
6. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes.
7. Scoop 1 tbsp of dough on the baking sheets, spacing them further than 2 inches apart as these cookies spread upon baking.
8. Bake on the upper-middle shelf of the oven for 25-28 minutes until the cookies are golden,
9. Cool the cookies on the baking sheets.

Chocolate Macroons

When I first saw the chocolate dipped macroon on google images few days back while searching for coconut based dessert , I absolutely had to make them. It was love at first sight :-) I did a mix n match of recipes as I wanted to try an eggless version. The recipes has been adapted  from EgglessCooking and Brown eyed baker. I have followed the original recipe which Eggless Cooking intended to follow, but still faced the same issues like her. The condensed milk and coconut mixture had turned runny even though it wasn't runny earlier and  I hadn't even added any milk. So, to avoid that I  am mentioning a lesser amount of condensed milk in the recipe here. Also, if you have parchment paper, use that. I used wax paper and faced a bit of trouble as it got stuck to the macroons.

Ingredients 

For 24 Macroons

3/4 cup Sweetened Condensed milk  [ I had used 1 cup]

1/4 cup All Purpose Flour

2 and 1/2 cup Sweetened Shredded Coconut [ I had used unsweetened, and the macroons were sweet enough]

8 oz Dark Chocolate for dipping

Preparation

1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 325F.
2. In a large bowl, combine sweetened milk and all purpose flour, whisking until blended.
3. Stir in coconut and mix well.
4. Drop the 1 tablespoon dough about 2 inches apart onto the baking sheet. Using your fingertips make it like a haystack.
5. Bake the macroons for 15-20 minutes until golden brown. I kept checking once 15 mins were over to see that coconuts are not burnt. The macroons should be crispy/crunchy and yet not burnt. It took me more than 20 minutes to achieve the required crispiness.
6. Cool the macroons  on the baking sheets for 2 minutes. Using a metal spatula remove them to a wire rack.
7. Let the macroons cool for 30 minutes at room temperature.
8. Melt dark chocolate and stir it smooth.
9. Line another baking sheet with parchment paper.
10. Holding the macroons by tip, dip the bottom in the chocolate  and place them on the baking sheet. refrigerate for 15 minutes for chocolate to set.

Enjoy the crispy crunchy macroons  :)

Pistachio and White Chocolate Burfi

This weekend was all about food and Mumbai. My brother in law and his wife were here in Bombay/Mumbai and wanted a taste of Mumbai life. Animesh and I have been here now for almost 3 years but there are still so many popular hangouts that we have not visited.Cafe Leopold  and Candies being few of them. You may have read or heard about Cafe Leopold  in the novel ShantaRam and also because it was the first

target of the 26/11 terrorists attacks . Cafe Leopold was not a place for us teetotalers so it would be unfair to judge it.The food was average. Late midnight on Friday, we stopped at Bachelors at the marine drive. It is a road side stall which is open entire night and has the best chocolate shakes and their menu include Ferroro Rocher chocolate shakes too!

On Saturday, me and my sis-in-law went to Candies for lunch and were wowed by its ambience. Such a green and spacious budget restaurant was totally unexpected in Mumbai. The food was good, salad was great. And even though I was full,I wanted to taste the desserts to compare with what I make, to know how much scope of improvement I had. I bought two mini cupcakes in lemon and chocolate flavor. I would be immodest ,but I found mine better . The ones at Candies were dry and nothing great. But , it is a place worth many revisits.

Sunday was even more foodilicious. We had  pav bhaji and chikoo shakes at Amar Juice Centre, golgappes and chaats at juhu beach, Kulhad tea  at Tea Centre ,Churchgate and finally the foodie weekend ended with  pizzas at the Pizzeria, Marine Drive. 

Now coming to the recipe :)  I had no idea about the Pistachio day on Feb 26 until my friend asked me what I had planned for it. I only needed a reason to make something new, but the weekend was going to be busy eating out , so I made these on Monday. These are easy to make but it was hard work for me, as the first recipe I tried did not come out pretty and was a bit sticky. My pistachhio burfi's were bottle green color  instead of bright green.  

I was not satisfied with the color and I couldn't have shared this recipe with others to make.

So, I tried another recipe, which involved blanching the pistachio first and then peeling it to give it a vibrant colour. I had almost used all the pistachios that I had for the first recipe, and there was only half cup left for the 2nd one. The colour would have been even more vibrant if all the pistachios were green.The ones I used had mostly yellows. I was happy with the 2nd recipe, but I had to do something to the first one to remove the stickiness and make it appealing. I had a brainwave to use white chocolate to cover it ,which would harden after freezing and voila!! The new dessert has been invented. Can I patent this !!! :-)  

And I knew I had made a great sweet dish when the first words my husband uttered was "Wow!! This tastesl like a premium dessert ! 

So, my suggestion to everyone who is going to make this- Though you can simply make it without the white chocolate, go for the white chocolate cover to make this extra special!

For 12 small burfis

Ingredients

1 cup  + 5 tbsp shelled pistachhio

1/3  cup+ 2 tbsp  sugar

1/4 cup water

Ghee/Clarified Butter 1 tbsp

2 Cardamom powdered

White chocolate - 4oz

Preparation

1. Blanch the pistachios in boiling water for 2-3 minutes
2. Drain the water and remove peels.  
3. Chop 5 tbsp blanched pistachio and keep aside.
4. Grind 1 cup pistachios to a paste without adding any water
5. Heat water and sugar to make a sugar syrup till it reduces to 1 and half Tbsp syrup.  
6. Add the pistachios,cardamom powder and ghee/clarified butter and start stirring continuously till you see the mixture forms into a soft ball.
7. Spread it onto a greased plate and smoothen the top.
8. Cut it into desired shapes when cooled for burfis
9. For White chocolate cover. 

• Melt white chocolate and mix till it smoothenes. 
• Cut parchment papers double the size of the burfis. Put a layer of chopped pistachios on it. Cover it with melted chocolate and smoothen the top using a spatula.
• On one half of the parchment paper,place the burfis. Cover it with second half and freeze for 30 mins till the chocolate hardens.
• Remove the parchment paper once the chocolate is set

You can check this video on youtube to see the consistency required. I don't understand the language but the way they make gives you an idea how to go ahead.Recipe Video

Roasted Almond Brownies

Can't See Eye to Eye-Take a Good Look at urself !!

This is for those who love brownies . I have never been particularly fond of them, but couldn't miss a chance to bake something new.  Though, I had planned to bake them on Friday night, but  that night we went to watch Biutiful- the spanish movie directed by Inarritu , and has the best actor of this generation Javier Bardem[IMO :)].  It is a very touching movie with brilliant acting by Bardem. Movies are ours [Animesh's and mine] other love apart from cooking  :) . So the baking was put on hold and I woke up early morning to make these brownies for my dearest friend Kshipra and her husband Hemant. Kshipra and I are soul-sisters. Our friendship is a decade long and when we were in a hostel together,many people mistook us for sisters.So, the first brownie experiment is on them :)  

My new cute little recipe diary is also going to be inaugurated today. I had been eyeing it secretly in Animesh's office bag and was thrilled when he gave me that.

The recipe is taken from PAB,who has taken it from Faith Heller Willinger’s cookbook,Adventures of an Italian Food Lover.PAB is a very famous blog by a very inspiring Indian woman who bakes most of the things from scratch, because of the lack of ingredients here in India. But that doesn't make any difference to the kind of cakes she bakes. It is world class,absolutely top-notch.

Ingredients

4oz dark chocolate

1/3 cup Olive Oil

3 large Eggs

1  cup Sugar

1 tsp Vanilla extract

3/4 cup all purpose flour

1 heaped tbsp Cocoa

1/2 tsp Salt

1/2 cup chopped roasted Almonds

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 185C. 
2. Line a  8 x 8 baking dish with parchment paper. Let the parchment paper overhang so that it is easy to pull the brownies when baked.
3.  In a small bowl melt the dark chocolate till smooth.
4. Whisk olive oil with melted chocolate and set aside.
5. Sift the flour, cocoa and salt.
6. In a large bowl,beat eggs, sugar and vanilla for 5 minutes, until nice and fluffy.
7. Fold in the chocolate mixture with a spatula. 
8. Fold in the sifted flour until just incorporated.
9. Add roasted almonds and mix.
10. Pour the batter into baking dish.
11. Sprinkle over with a few roasted almonds.
12. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean with few wet crumbs. Mine were done in 22 minutes. Since the brownies are supposed to be moist so you shouldn 't overbake them.
13. Cut them in squares once it is completely cooled.
14. Make a sizzling brownie by warming it and serving it with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce. 

I am sending this to Divya for her Brownie event

Chocolate Cupcake

I love cupcakes. Since they are small,you can pretend that you are taking in less calories. Though, this doesn't hold true for me because once I begin eating them I can't stop picking up the next one. I have begun my baking journey by baking the simplest of them, the chocolate cupcake. I had planned to use a chocolate frosting but was in hurry the day these were made, so finally settled for the simplest buttercream frosting. If you look at the cupcake recipes online, plenty of frosting is used , But I have used it miserly as this frosting is very sweet.
As my learning process continues ,I have learned of many other kind of frosting techniques like Italian meringue buttercream , Swiss meringue buttercream  .I am yet to  try them.

Ingredients
For 16 cupcakes.

 1/2 cup  Dutch-processed cocoa powder

1 cup  hot water

1 1/3 cups  all purpose flour [maida]

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

2 tsp  vanilla extract OR 1 tsp vanilla essense [Preferably use vanilla extract]

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 185 degrees C. 
2. Line and butter cupcake pan with paper liners. 
3. In a small bowl stir  boiling water and cocoa powder till it is smooth.No lumps should remain. Cool it to room temperature. 
4. In a separate bowl whisk  flour, baking powder and salt. 
5. Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
6. Add eggs, one at a time, beat till smooth.
7. Beat in the vanilla extract/essence.
8. Add the flour mixture and beat only until incorporated
9. Add the cooled cocoa mixture and stir until smooth.
10. Fill each cup about two-thirds full with batter .Don't fill it to the full as the batter will rise it will overflow and lose its shape.
11. Bake for about 16-18minutes or until risen and a toothpick inserted into a cupcake comes out clean.
12. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
13. Start frosting when the cupcake is completely cooled.

Buttercream Frosting

2 cups sifted Icing or powdered sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract OR 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

2 tablespoons milk or light cream

1. Cream butter till smooth.
2. Add the vanilla extract.
3. Gradually beat in the sugar. Add the milk or cream and beat on high speed until frosting is light and fluffy.
4. If you want coloured buttercream add some food colour.

The Recipe has been followed from JoyofBaking

Notes:

To make it more chocolaty add some melted chocolate in the cupcake batter. I felt a bit more chocolate flavor was needed.

Dark Chocolate Bundt Cake

 Ingredients
Cooking Spray/Butter
1 and 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup Dutch processed cocoa
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp butter, melted
2 tbsp refined oil
2 eggs
2 egg whites
1 1/2 cups yogurt
1 tsp vanilla essence/extract
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp espresso powder, dissolved in 1 tablespoon of hot water
2 ounces good-quality dark chocolate
1 tbsp powdered sugar, optional

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Spray a bundt pan with cooking spray/butter and set aside.
2. Sift together flours, cocoa, salt, baking soda and baking powder in a medium bowl..
3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together melted butter and oil.
4. Add eggs and egg whites and whisk to incorporate. 
5. Fold in yogurt, vanilla, sugar and dissolved espresso powder.
6. Melt the chocolate in the microwave for 60 to 90 seconds; at  30 second intervals, stir each time till smooth and melted
7. Fold chocolate into batter.
8. Add sifted dry ingredients and stir until just incorporated.
9. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until cake has risen nicely and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
10. Cool 10 minutes on a wire rack.

The recipe for the cake has been inspired from the TheKitchenSinkRecipes

Butter Ganache

Ingredients:
250 g. dark chocolate
250 g. unsalted butter OR  300mL cream

Microwave Method

• Chop chocolate into small pieces. Place in a microwave-safe bowl with the cream or butter.
• On medium power, microwave for one-minute bursts, stirring in between, until melted and combined. Mix well.

Stove Method

• Chop chocolate into small pieces. Place in a heatproof bowl with the butter OR cream.
•   Sit the bowl in a small saucepan half-full of simmering water, taking care the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water. Stir until the mixture is melted and combined.

Assembling the Cake
.

1. Sit the cake on a cooling rack, with a plate or sheet of baking paper underneath to catch the drips.
2.  Pour the ganache from a jug evenly over the cake. It will soak in and provide an excellent flavour.

Devilish Chocolate Cake

Had baked this cake for my husband's birthday and it was my first experience with frosting a cake. Though,it was alot of hard work but the result was a wonderfully beautiful looking birthday cake and the caffeinated frosting just added to the taste. The best compliment came from my husband, he just couldn't wait for the clock to strike 12 and the cake was cut more than an hour before 12 :)

I had made a two layer cake, but whenevr I am going to make it next I will make it a 4 layer cake.

For that 2 cakes would be needed and frosting too will need to be increased.

The Cake and the frosting recipe follows.

Cake Ingredients

• 1-1/2 oz unsweetened chocolate
• 1-1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch process cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 6 tbsp soft unsalted butter
• 1-1/2 cups sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla essence/extract
• 3/4 cup and 3 tbsp buttermilk [Instructions given below for substituting buttermilk]

Preparation of the Cake

1.  Butter the bottom and sides of the baking pan
2. Line the bottom of each pan with parchment paper and butter the paper.
3. Melt the unsweetened chocolate in microwave. At 40 seconds interval take it out and stir. Keep repeating till it is melted and smooth. Set the chocolate aside to cool slightly while you mix the batter.
4.  Preheat the oven to 175 degrees.
5. Increase the oven temperature to 350 degrees
6. Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt together and set aside.
7. Put the butter in the large bowl of an electric mixer and mix on low speed for 15 seconds. Add the sugar and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes, or until the mixture is fluffy and lightens from yellow to cream color.
8. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl during this mixing. Beat for 2 more minutes.
9. Decrease the speed to low and mix in the vanilla extract and melted chocolate. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl during this mixing.
10. Add the flour mixture and the buttermilk alternately, beginning and ending with the flour mixture (3 flour, 2 buttermilk). Let the mixture absorb the flour before adding more buttermilk. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl after the last addition of flour. The batter is ready when the final addition of flour is mixed completely into the batter. If any flour is clinging to the sides of the bowl, stir it into the batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan or pans and smooth the top of the batter.
11. Bake for about 40 minutes for 9-inch round.
12. To test for doneness, gently press your fingers on the middle of the cake. It should feel firm. If it does, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. When the toothpick comes out clean, the cake is done.
13. Cool the cake in the baking pan on a wire rack.

Chocolate Fudge Frosting

Ingredients

• 1/4 oz unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup half-and-half [Instructions given below for substituting Half and half]
• 4 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 4 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped
• 2 cups icing sugar, sifted
• 1 tsp vanilla essence/extract
• 2 tsp instant decaffeinated coffee dissolved in 1 tbsp water
• Chocolate Sprinklers

Preparation of the  the Fudge Frosting

1. Put the butter, granulated sugar, and half-and-half in a medium saucepan and heat over medium heat until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves, stirring occasionally.
2. Increase the heat to medium-high and simmer the mixture for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Small bubbles will form around the edge of the pan. Remove the saucepan from the heat.
3. Add the semisweet and unsweetened chocolate and stir the mixture until it is smooth and all of the chocolate is melted.
4. Return the saucepan to low heat for 1 minute, if necessary, to melt the chocolate completely.
5. Pour the chocolate mixture into the large bowl of an electric mixer.
6. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and dissolved coffee and mix on low speed just to incorporate the powdered sugar.
7. Press plastic wrap onto the surface of the mixture and refrigerate until it is cool to the touch, about 35 minutes. Stir occasionally to ensure the mixture cools throughout. Makes about 2-1/2 cups.
8. Beat the cooled chocolate mixture on medium-high for 1 minute, or until the frosting is creamy and lightens slightly in color.

 This recipe has been inspired from Globalgourmet.com

 Assembling the Cake

1. When the cake has cooled, Cut it into 2 horizontal layers. Use a see-saw manner to cut it evenly.
2. Taking the bottom part, with cut side up, apply the frosting using a metal spatula.
3. Put the 2^nd layer on the frosted first layer with cut side down.
4. Apply the frosting to the sides and the top of the cake.
5. Fill some of the frosting in the icing bag  and make star shaped designs on the edge of the top of the cake
6. Sprinkle Chocolate sprinkles
7. Enjoy !!

 Substitutes

Buttermilk [1 Cup]

1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar plus enough milk to make 1 cup (240 ml) (let stand 5-10 minutes)

OR 1 cup (225 grams) plain yogurt

OR 1 cup (225 grams) sour cream

OR 1 cup (240 ml) milk plus 1 1/2 - 1 3/4 teaspoons cream of tartar

Half and Half [1 Cup]

1 tablespoon butter /margarine plus enough milk to make 1 cup (240 ml) (let stand 2 minutes)