Hi all, not my normal post today but I just had to share this photo of my pretty as a button niece. She was born first of Spring and we are all hopelessly in love with her. I sent her a new best friend also named "Mia" the other day from this gorgeous online store. They have so many beautiful things for little bubs it was hard to resist buying just the one!
Sorry about the long break in between posts. Hubs and I are on a rather ardious diet which almost deletes all things sweet. However, of course one must take whisk and bowl in hand when a special occasion comes along such was the case this weekend. A girlfriend of mine whom I haven't seen in ages popped in for a visit.
You may have noticed the use of cupcake liners in this post. I had made the decision not to use them as where I live, decent liners are few and far between. That was the main reason for my not using them with all my cakes prior to this. However when transporting the sweet darlings it can get rather precarious therefore I'm giving them a go. Tried some basic white mini liners with this recipe. I have to say, although simple, they are rather cute.
This is a moist nutty hazelnut cake recipe with a zing of lemon zest. A rather unusual combination but which I think works. The lemon tang in the cake compliments the sweet and tart raspberries on top. Whilst the hazelnut flavour goes beautifully with the dark chocolate ganache.
I experimented with another method in creating the 2 layers. I wanted it to look like a chocolate cake from the outside and only show a pistachio centre once you bite into it. I also added another twist to the flavours. I opted not to add orange zest to the cakes but passionfruit into the chocolate ganache. This was an idea I borrowed from Pierre Herme. I was quite happy with the results.
Been having more than my share of pistachio and chocolate gelati lately due to the summer weather of course. Remembering that I still had a few batches of pistachio paste left in the freezer I was in the mood for the same flavours in a cake recipe.
These mini cakes became a juxtaposition of flavours. The pistachio imparts a light nutty texture which plays wonderfully against the dark fullness of the chocolate. For the frosting I decided on a composition of dark bitter-sweet chocolate ganache topped with a single cube of apricot which was steeped in lemon juice and hint of honey. The sweet tartness of the apricot contrasts the very decadent chocolate ganache.
This combination brought just the right balance of sweetness and tangy tartness to the palate. Quite a delight.
Summer is well and truly here and our household has been packed with the wonderful fruits of the season. Coming from a country that is pretty much "summer" most of the year to a climate that is quite the opposite, one feels very fortunate when the days are hot and breezy. Therefore, I decided to turn these summertime fruits into a Trio of Petit Fours ... tangy citrus fruits with plump sweet berries, to inaugurate the brilliant weather of course!
I love the taste that almond and ricotta gives to a cake. A wonderfully rich but fluffy texture with nutty flavours. The addition of lemon zest and raspberries plays refreshingly well along side this. I picked raspberries as I love their deep red colour but blueberries would work equally well, especially with the lemon. With a dollop of lemon cream cheese frosting I wanted to add just a bit more prettiness to these little cakes. Citrus Tuiles came to mind. I had some left over orange and lemon zest which was perfect.
These little morsels are versatile as they can be dressed down for afternoon tea or dressed up for after dinner petit fours.
Hubs did mention they were like a "birthday cake in one" ...
These are my favourite cakes in the world and so rather then baking a whole cake why not in Petit Four size. So here they are. Topped with an Orange flavoured cream cheese frosting with a shard of Citrus Tuile.
yummy ...
The last addition to our Summer Trio is a traditional pound cake recipe with a sweet and buttery flavour. The addition of orange zest gave it just the right tangy punch. This can of course be substituted with lemon. Sweet and Simple ...
I asked Hubs "what should I call these devilish little darlings". I couldn't decide whether they were cupcakes or mini muffins, so I settled with Mini Cake Muffins. They are very moist and rich inside yet they hold their structure well without the use of cupcake liners. The added cherry pieces that I folded into the batter at the very last minute are a match made in heaven with the deep bittersweet chocolate. I wanted an additional yet subtle flavour through these little cakes so I decided to infuse the chocolate ganache frosting with about 1-2 teaspoonfuls of Lychee Tea. That was just enough to give a hint of Lychee.
These little treats are indeed quite decadent but one or two I think is allowed in anyone's day...
This week I felt like baking something that reminded me of home so I decided what better than a yummy scrumptious dose of carrot cake. A fan of Claire Clark I used her Carrot Cake recipe for this and adapted it to Mini Carrot Cake Muffins. I always like the addition of some orange zest to the batter as I find it adds to the flavour beautifully. They turned out wonderfully moist and spongy. These small delectable morsels needed no embellishment except a dollop of cream cheese frosting.
Afternoon tea anyone...
