Sugar et al

Because Life is a blend of flavours...

Passion Fruit Cupcakes

7|09|2016

589A2424-2

A few years ago when we were packing for Australia, everyone was curious to know what were the first things I would like to see or experience ‘down under’. Perhaps the magnificent Opera House or one of the 100 incredible beaches around Sydney. Some were very sure it would be Adriano Zumbo’s dessert train because I would go on and on about him and his creations. ‘Passion fruit’ was my reply. ‘I want to see a passion fruit!’. I had seen pictures of the golden yellow pulp on cheesecakes and I just wanted to see if it was really as beautiful. Upon coming, which was around this time of the year, I fulfilled my desire and got hold of them in the very first week. I hadn’t seen the exterior before so I pondered at the market whether something not as beautiful outside could really be holding the vibrant puree. When I cut them open..Oh la la…there it was oozing out in all it’s golden glory.

589A2439-2

 

589A2449

I love the taste of passion fruit but I love the smell even more. It’s got that intensely fruity smell which almost seems unreal. Like pineapple essence. It is so strong but fresh pineapple doesn’t taste or smell like that. But passion fruit is real. The taste, colour and smell. And of course, the black crunchy seeds! I’ve used a simple recipe to use some passion fruit pulp and turn it into delicious cupcakes.

589A2448

Passion Fruit Cupcakes
Makes 12

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C (160 degrees C for fan-forced. Line a 12-hole, 1/3 cup-capacity muffin pan with paper liners.

Using an electric mixer, beat butter, sugar, flour, baking powder, eggs and vanilla for 3 minutes or until smooth and combined. Add passion fruit pulp. Beat until just combined. Spoon mixture into paper cases. Bake for 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Stand in pan for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Once cooled, frost with buttercream. Decorate with candies, sprinkles and/or edible flowers.

Passion Fruit Swiss Meringue Buttercream

3 egg whites
3/4 cup castor sugar
275 g unsalted butter, room temperature
3 tbsp passion fruit pulp(strained)
1-2 drops yello food color (optional)

To make the Buttercream : Place the egg whites and sugar in a large bowl that is placed over a saucepan of simmering water (over low heat), and whisk continuously, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the bottom of the bowl is warm to touch

Remove the bowl from the heat and whip on high speed until meringue holds stiff peaks and looks glossy. The bowl should have completely cooled by now.
Add the butter, 2 tablespoon at a time, until thick and fluffy. If it begins to look curdled, continue to whip until it comes back together, before adding in remaining butter.

When the buttercream has come together, add the passion fruit pulp and food color and mix till smooth and well blended.

 

 

Orange and Carrot Cake

27|07|2016

The best part about winter for a person like me who does not really enjoy the cold is definitely the food. I like a bit of spice in everything, sweet or savory! I noticed that I’ve been using nutmeg a lot this winter as compared to the rest of the year when the spice is lying quietly in one corner of my cupboard.  What is a Winter without Carrot Cake? The Internet is flooded with Carrot cake recipes and there is no point in me adding just another one. So I’ve combined the flavours of a classic carrot cake with zesty oranges and the marriage is nothing short of a flavour explosion! Think of warm spices, soft caramel kissed Carrot Cake, the bitterness of orange marmalade and just a touch of sweet white chocolate. I’ll let the pictures do the talking for you.

Orange and Carrot Cake

Orange and Carrot Cake

Cakes like these don’t need tonnes of buttercream. It is there in the cake to cement the flavours and the layers together. So I have applied a thin coat of swiss meringue buttercream and a generous amount of orange marmalade to complement the cake. One important factor that I always stress on is that making a cake should not mean toiling away in the kitchen or an elaborate prep. I did not even grate the carrots at home this time. The supermarkets sell shredded carrots that obviously differ in thickness. I’ve been meaning to try them out as I was pretty sure they would add a bit more texture to the soft cake. I was right! So I easily skipped the longest step in making a carrot cake. The top as quite a few of you asked me on Instagram is entirely edible. There are meringues, edible flowers and little candy discs that I created in a two-tone effect using candy melts. I sprinkled a bit of gold dust on them. They are are my favourite new experiment and they just take your desserts to a whole new level. You know what, I can’t wait till Christmas. I am all about sprinkles, chocolate and candy already.

Orange and Carrot Cake

 

Orange and Carrot Cake

Orange and Carrot Cake

Orange And Carrot Cake (carrot cake adapted with variation from Epicurious)
Makes a 6 inch, 3 layered round cake

1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
|1 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
3/4 cup castor sugar
4 large eggs
1/3 cup orange juice
1/4 cup citrus peel (or 1 tbsp freshly grated orange peel)
2 cups self-raising flour
11/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups finely grated peeled carrot
1/2 cup raisins
Cinnamon swiss meringue buttercream (recipe below)
1/2 cup Orange Marmalade
Decorations- meringue kisses, edible flowers, candy discs, grated chocolate

Cinnamon Buttercream
4 egg whites
1 cup castor sugar
300 g unsalted butter, room temperature, cubed
1 tsp powdered cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla essence
2-3 drops of orange food colouring (I used a mix of red and yellow coloring)

For the orange colored, white chocolate ganache
100 g white chocolate, roughly chopped
3 tbsp heavy cream
3-4 drops of a mix of red and yellow food colour

Preheat oven to 170 degrees C. Lightly grease the sides and bottom and line the bottoms of 3, 6-inch pans with non-stick baking paper.

Using an electric mixer (or by hand), beat oil and both sugars in large bowl until well blended. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in orange juice and peel. Sift flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt into large bowl; add to sugar mixture and beat to blend. Stir in carrots and raisins.

Pour batter into the prepared pans. Bake until a wooden skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven. Cool cake for 10 minutes. Turn cake out onto a wire rack. Remove baking paper and cool. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Wrap tightly in plastic and store at room temperature.)

To make the cinnamon swiss meringue buttercream
Place the egg whites and sugar in a large bowl that is placed over a saucepan of simmering water (over low heat), and whisk continuously, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the bottom of the bowl is warm to touch

Remove the bowl from the heat and whip on high speed until meringue holds stiff peaks and looks glossy. The bowl should have completely cooled by now.
Add the butter, 2 tablespoon at a time, until thick and fluffy. If it begins to look curdled, continue to whip until it comes back together, before adding in remaining butter.
When the buttercream is smooth and has come together, add the cinnamon, vanilla and  food color and whip gently again to blend.

To make the orange colored, white chocolate ganache: Heat the white chocolate and heavy cream over very low heat in a small saucepan. When cream just reaches boiling point, remove from heat and leave aside. Stir with a spoon to make a smooth mix. Add the food colour and stir to blend.

To assemble 
Once the cake layers are completely cool, start assembling..
On a cake plate or stand, spread a little buttercream in the centre and place one layer of the cake (so that the cake does not move about while frosting). Spread about 1/2 a cup of cinnamon swiss meringue buttercream. Spread half the quantity of orange marmalade. Place the second layer. Repeat. Place the last layer upside down (so you get a flat top). Spread buttercream on the top and sides. If you want to make it look like a naked cake, a thin layer of frosting is good enough.
Stick the cake into the refrigerator for 15-20 mins.
Make the white chocolate ganache 5 minutes before you take the cake out from the fridge.Once the ganche is cool, but still flowing freely when you lift it with a spoon, spoon it onto the cake slowly. Be gentle on the edges to create the drippy effect.
Decorate with meringues, candy and edible flowers.

 

Earl Grey Cupcakes

7|06|2016

When we moved countries a few years ago, the one big lifestyle change that happened to us as a couple was that we gave up drinking Chai. The milk-added version of tea. It’s kind of sad. Because tea was one of the first things that was taught to girls in Indian homes when I was growing up, it brings back a great deal of nostalgia. I learnt to make a good cup of chai from my grandmother. Good quality tea leaves with a great milk-water-sugar ratio and a hint of cardamom and ginger is the secret to a rejuvenating cup of tea. Like my Dad would say ‘ good cup of tea in the morning is a great start to the day’. Alas! In the last few years I became totally Australian in my love for coffee.

IMG_1919-2

It all started during our first few months in Australia. Moving out of your comfort zone in to a new country means starting life anew. What we brought with us for the kitchen was minimal and most often, everything was cooked in either in the single frying pan or single saucepan we had with us. So boiling tea the traditional way didn’t seem like a good idea when the cleaning was quite a task. So we switched over to tea bags. I experimented with all  varieties of tea I could find but never fell in love with any. Coffee was instead what I got hooked on to. The tea bags were soon used to flavour desserts. Tea is a wonderful flavour infuser. And Earl Grey is a classic! These cupcakes have a strong dose of Earl Grey tea and they are fabulous. They use the tea inside the bags to not only add flavour but texture as well. Unlike infusing milk ,cream or water with the tea bags, this recipe uses the actual leaves in the batter.

IMG_1924

I’ve used an orange buttercream to frost the cupcakes to stick to the citrus notes in the cupcake. Did you know the flavour in Earl Grey is actually from the rind of Bergamot Oranges? Well, I’ve never seen that variety but how gorgeous is the flavour!

IMG_1927

Earl Grey Cupcakes With Orange Buttercream 
Makes 12 (cupcakes adapted from here)

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Line a 12-hole muffin pan with paper liners

Empty the tea leaves from the tea bags into a cup and add the boiling water. Set aside for 3 minutes. Stir in the milk and then transfer to a large bowl.

Add the butter, eggs, sugar and flour to the tea mixture. Use electric beaters on low speed to beat until just combined. Increase speed to medium and beat until the mixture is pale and creamy (the mixture may look slightly curdled).

Spoon the mixture evenly into the greased pans. Bake in preheated oven for 20-22 minutes or until golden and a skewer inserted in the cakes comes out clean. Remove from the oven and set aside for 2-3 minutes before turning onto a wire rack to cool.

Once completely cooled, frost them with orange buttercream using a piping bag and a star nozzle. Decorate with sugar flowers.

Orange Swiss Meringue Buttercream
4 egg whites
1 cup castor sugar
300 g unsalted butter, room temperature
Finely grated zest of one orange
2 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice
1 tsp Orange liquor (I used Cointreau), optional

To make the Buttercream : Place the egg whites and sugar in a large bowl that is placed over a saucepan of simmering water (over low heat), and whisk continuously, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the bottom of the bowl is warm to touch

Remove the bowl from the heat and whip on high speed until meringue holds stiff peaks and looks glossy. The bowl should have completely cooled by now.
Add the butter, 2 tablespoon at a time, until thick and fluffy. If it begins to look curdled, continue to whip until it comes back together, before adding in remaining butter.

When the buttercream has come together, add the orange zest and juice (and liquor, if using) and mix till smooth and well blended.

 

 

 

 

 

Rosewater And Poppy Seed Cake

2|05|2016

You guys! I never thought you would love my experiments so much. When I make something I picture how much me, my family and friends would love to eat it. There are no other benchmarks for me. I barely look at trends, I don’t care a hoot for what my traffic stats should look like or what makes a post do well. I read about these things everywhere but honestly, I don’t understand much. It’s just me and my craft. And on the other side it is you, my dear readers. I like to do things that make you happy or things that will enable you to make someone else happy. So many of you have asked for the recipe of this rosewater and poppy seed cake. It came as a surprise to me. So I’ll keep it short and sweet and jump straight to the cake.

IMG_1608-4

The cake has a great texture just as you would expect from a poppy seed cake. The rosewater is what you taste. I’ve used a little syrup to moisten the cake and make the cake more fragrant.In between the layers and outside is a lemon infused buttercream. Lastly, on the top is a white chocolate ganache in that shocking pink colour. So much happening in the cake but it tastes beautiful.

IMG_1610

IMG_1636

IMG_1637

It’s meant to be a Mother’s day cake so please go ahead and decorate it with the prettiest roses you can find. Try and use flowers that have not been sprayed with insecticides or fungicides. If you can’t find any, make sure to read this post on decorating with flowers.

IMG_1617

Rosewater And Poppy Seed Cake
Makes a 3-layered 6 inch round cake

4 tbsp poppy seed
200 g unsalted butter, melted, plus a little extra for greasing
225 g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
4 large eggs, at room temperature
225 g castor sugar
1 tbsp rosewater

For the rosewater syrup
1/2 cup water
4 tbsp castor sugar
1 tbsp rosewater

For the Lemon Swiss Meringue Buttercream
4 egg whites
1 cup castor sugar
300 g unsalted butter, room temperature, cubed
1 tsp lemon zest
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1-2 drops, pink food coloring (optional)

For the white chocolate ganache
100 g white chocolate, roughly chopped
3 tbsp heavy cream
3-4 drops pink food colour

To make the cake layers: Preheat oven to 180 degrees C ( 160 degrees C for fan forced ovens). Roast the poppy seed on a pan over low heat for 2 mins. Grease and line the base of 3 round (6 inch) pans with baking paper.

Mix together the flour and baking powder, then set aside. Put the eggs and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Using electric beaters, whisk until thick, pale and foamy. Pour in the cooled butter and rosewater and briefly whisk again. Sift in the flour mix, add poppy seeds then, using a large metal spoon, carefully fold into the cake mixture until even. Pour the mixture into the tins and bake for 15 mins or until golden and springy to the touch. Cool in the tins for 10 mins, then transfer to a wire rack.

To make the rose syrup : Add sugar to a small saucepan. Pour in water and stir.
With the heat on medium, bring the sugar and water to a rolling boil, stirring constantly. The sugar will dissolve while the water boils.
Turn off the heat and let cool. When sugar syrup has cooled, add the rosewater.

To make the Lemon Swiss Meringue Buttercream:  Place the egg whites and sugar in a large bowl that is placed over a saucepan of simmering water (over low heat), and whisk continuously, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the bottom of the bowl is warm to touch

Remove the bowl from the heat and whip on high speed until meringue holds stiff peaks and looks glossy. The bowl should have completely cooled by now.
Add the butter, 2 tablespoon at a time, until thick and fluffy. If it begins to look curdled, continue to whip until it comes back together, before adding in remaining butter.
When the buttercream is smooth and has come together, add the lemon zest and juice and whip gently again to blend.

To make the pink white chocolate ganache: Heat the white chocolate and heavy cream over low heat in a small saucepan. When cream just reaches boiling point, remove from heat and leave aside. Stir with a spoon to make a smooth mix. Add the food colour and stir to blend.

To assemble: Once the cake layers are slightly cool, brush each layer generously with rosewater syrup.
On a cake plate or stand, spread a little buttercream in the centre and place one layer of the cake (so that the cake does not move about while frosting). Spread about 1/2 a cup of lemon swiss meringue buttercream. Place the second layer. Repeat. Place the last layer upside down (so you get a flat top). Spread buttercream on the top and sides. If you want to make it look like a naked cake, a thin layer of frosting is good enough.
Stick the cake into the refrigerator for 15-20 mins.
Make the white chocolate ganache 5 minutes before you take the cake out from the fridge.Once the ganche is cool, but still flowing freely when you lift it with a spoon, spoon it onto the cake slowly. Be gentle on the edges to create the drippy effect.
Decorate with crushed meringues, silver cashous and flowers.