The Low Fat, Low Calorie Cupcake to end all cupcakes

The title of this post is bold. I am very aware of that but I stand behind this cupcake. It is my baby and it took some making but it is for everyone I have every met, known and loved who like my baking but have to say no because they are trying to eat healthy. These said same people usually give out to me for making too many delicious goodies that they cannot resist but subsequently regret when face with a pair of skinny jeans.

 To be fair they are complimenting me and I do appreciate it but I feel bad too. As a fellow workout and health food fanatic (50% of the time) I understand how they feel and I want to ease any guilt associated with enjoying my creations and hence..... the 80kcal cupcake.

80kcals!! Frosting and all

There is no mad mystery to this cake though. It's a simple alteration to a recipe that Alton Brown actually uses in his cupcake episode of 'Good Eats,'- Chiffon. This is not the cake recipe that most people use,or that I would normally use but it is perfect for health conscious individuals as it contains less flour and butter than most cakes.

The frosting is a meringue frosting and again this is a favourite among healthy types for it's use of egg whites. I injected some of my homemade strawberry jam into the centre for a little extra flavour and moisture in the centre. The overall theme was strawberries and meringue as these were made for an 'End of Summer,' party.

Strawberry and Meringue guilt-free Cupcakes

• 150g flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 5 large eggs
• 5/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 75g Caster Sugar
• 10g Stevia
• 60ml cup water
• 60ml  melted butter
• 1.5 teaspoon vanilla extract 

Preheat your oven to 170F/325C/Gas Mark 4. Then sieve together your flour, baking powder and salt. Seperate your eggs carefully and then beat the yolks with the stevia and 50g of the sugar until it is light and ribbons. Add the butter, vanilla, flour mixture and water and beat until incorporated.

In a seperate clean bowl, whisk together the egg whites and cream of tartar until you have soft peaks. Slowly pour in the 25g of sugar until it has been fully dissolved. Then add this meringue mixture to the rest of the ingredients and fold in. Spoon into cupcake cases and bake for 20-30mins.

Meringue Frosting  

•  5 large egg whites
• 5/8 tsp cream of tartar
• 50g caster sugar
• 8g Stevia
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp strawberry flavouring
• 30ml water

Put all the ingredients in a heat-proof bowl and beat with an electric mixer. Heat a saucepan half full of water until it has reached a simmer. Submerge the bottom of your mixing bowl and continue to beat. Remove from the saucepan when all the sugar crystals have dissolved. Continue to beat for another 15 minutes until the mixture is light and smooth, like a normal meringue. Be careful not to over-beat (as you can see, I took it slightly slightly too far in this picture.)


Assembling your cupcakes and finishing touches

Once your cupcakes have cooled. Inject a small amount of home-made low sugar jam into each cupcake.

Almost there, resist the urge to dig in!

Then pipe a peak of meringue onto each cupcake and toast this using a blow-torch or even a carefully watched grill! Dust your cupcakes in a finally sprinkle of icing sugar and then stand-back and admire your......oh.......you're eating them already?! Fair enough ;)

Enjoy!

Nutritional Info - 1cupcake = approx. 80Kcals, 10g carbs, 2.5g protein & 100% awesome

Cupcake week - Roasted peaches and cream boutiques

Recently I have been working together with decidedlydelicious to experiment with different recipes and learn from one another. It has really been very enjoyable and educational too. This week was Cupcake Week UK and food network are celebrating it with lots of episodes of cupcake wars and .... a competition for..... a food processor? =/ Well it's ok they are promoting this amazing celebration/competition with the amazing and inspiration YOLO.......erm........? Sorry, sorry rant over, regardless I want to join in this celebration and therefore we offer these tiny celebratory cakes that would be very appropriate as little boutique wedding tokens or just tiny treats for any time.

Roasted Peaches and Creme Boutiques

(inspired by peaches and cream cupcakes from the Hummingbird Cafe)

6 Peaches chopped into cubes
2 table spoons vanilla caster sugar (or just ordinary caster sugar)
30g Butter
1 Cup/125g Sugar
1 cup/125g Flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
20ml Cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
100ml Milk

Preheat your oven to 200' F/400' C/ Gas Mark 6.  Sprinkle your vanilla caster sugar over your peaches and toss them before roasting for 30 minutes or until soft inside and caramelized outside. Reduce the oven to 180'F/350' C/Gas Mark 4

Line your cupcake tins and insert peaches into each case.

Beat together the flour, baking and soda powders, sugar and butter  until you have bread-crumb consistency. Slowly pour in the cream and then start beating. As you beat this add another 40ml of the milk until the mixture is creamy and smooth. 




Whisk together the rest of the milk with the egg and vanilla and then slowly (watch for splashes at this point) beat this into the dough. Once everything is incorporated scoop the mixture over the peaches and bake for 15-20 minutes on a middle shelf.

Once the cupcakes have cooled ice them with a fluffy vanilla buttercream in tiny rosettes patterns

 

This recipe as mentioned was inspired and adapted from the Hummingbird Peaches and Cream Cupcake. Their style of cupcake baking is very different and having attempted it I was surprised to see how light and fluffy my cake came out, even with our alterations.

For future attempts I would possibly put the peaches in half way through the cupcake as we found that the fruit sometimes detached from the cake and with these particular cupcakes, where we used the IKEA muffin tin to achieve the slender height of a boutique there was possibly too much cake between the fruit and the icing. That said however, these are delicious and were very well received in this house so please enjoy =)

Baking for Gout

This year I was introduced to an amazing and wonderful baker, decidedlydelicious who adapts recipes for her lactose intolerance. Through various discussions with her, I discovered how we are all slightly lactose intolerant and the benefits of going lactose free. At the time when we first started talking about this I was trying lactose free while recovering from a cold but since then both myself and the bf have switched to lactose free and find that it has had a very positive effect on our health. We are not 100% lactose free but we try. Dietary restrictions are a pain sometimes and therefore I think that it's important to attempt to provide some solutions for different dietary needs.

This week I will be addressing Gout. There are a number of different dietary suggestions for gout but from what I have read sufferers need to increase protein, whole grains and fibre and reduce sugars and fats. There's no way you can eat cake then right? Wrong! This cake is both delicious, low in fat, high in protein and contains lemon which breaks down uric acid. There will be more than one post on this subject and for reference sake this cake is higher on the fat/sugar than others that will follow so gout suffers can enjoy in moderation!

Lemon and Raisin Cake

100g Plain Flour
200g Kamut Flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
125g Butter
15g Stevia
10g Granulated Sugar
1 whole egg and 2 egg yolks
50g apple sauce
2-3 tbsp lemon juice (taste preference)
75g raisins
25g Ground almonds

Preheat your oven to 180C/350F/Gas mark 4. Sieve together your flours, baking powder and salt. In a stand-mixer or with an electric whisk beat together your butter, granulated sugar and stevia until the mixture is very light and fluffy. In separate bowls mix your apple sauce and lemon juice and beat together your eggs.

Slowly, alternating between the flour mixture, eggs and applesauce mixture combine the ingredients, mixing thoroughly. Once a smooth batter has been achieved then add the raisins. Pour into a baking paper lined cake tin and scattered the ground almond onto the top before baking. Bake for 45minutes on a middle shelf or until a toothpick comes out clean. Turn out and let cool fully before eating (this is harder than it seems.

The cake can appear doughy when first cut but you will find that it is soft and delicate and it melts in the mouth. Hopefully you enjoy this whether or not you have gout =)

I did!

Breaking Bad Review (No Spoilers)

WARNING: Breaking Bad is a highly addictive show and has caused many incidents of productivity loss, obsessive thoughts and prioritizing of watching episodes over healthy activities such as exercise, eating and sleep. With the volume of previous episodes available it is extremely important for the new viewer to pace themselves and remember it's important to continue daily activities e.g. work.

For those who may not be aware Breaking Bad is a highly successful show on the AMC network starring Bryan Cranston as Walter White, a Chemistry teacher, who upon discovering he has terminal cancer is forced to find a way to provide for his family after his demise. After a chance encounter with an old student, Jessie Pinkman (Aaron Paul) Walter realizes that one way to make money fast and use his skills is to cook Meth. The pair team up to combine Walter's genius chemistry knowledge and Jessie's knowledge of drug dealing and this underground network. The thing is nothing in life is simple, particularly in illegal activities, and from there as you can imagine hilarious antics ensue.

In my last tv review I referenced Shakespearean drama and this show could also be considered Shakespearean in many ways but in very different ways to Revenge. This appears to be a classic tragedy and this is evident in almost every episode. The construction of the episodes is very interesting in that the cold-opening shows a scene from the end of the episode or the end of the season which establishes a sense of foreboding and mystery while the viewer watches how this conclusion is reached. The very premise of the show establishes a foregone conclusion of oncoming death and loss and like many great tragedies it highlights themes of family, sacrifice, money and deception and all the drama that occurs when these elements combine.

A colleague, with whom I have often discussed this show, pointed out that one of the standout elements of this show lies in the truly brilliant writing. He pointed out that unlike many shows there is not one filler scene in any episode. Almost every line is relevant and one can often find that missing a single scene can result in loss of vital information relevant for future episodes. So learn to utilize the pause function on your dvr or watch episodes repeatedly, which is really not a chore.

The current season starts like many others with Walt and Jessie trying to regroup after the chaos that was the end of the last season.This time with their experience to date they have some different ideas about what they want to do and some absolute genius ideas I might add. The consequences and ramifications of their previous decision are not to be ignored and we see some interesting character developments in the first few episodes. Walt himself has developed and changed; the whole journey in seasons 3 &4 seems to have impacted him significantly. Jessie too appears to be growing into himself and trusting his ideas and his ability to make decisions. The only question that remains is what impact this will have on the business and whether the values that initiated this story will remain as the two become further entrenched in this outer world. I for one look forward to see what will happen.

15 Minute Fudge

 

Ok this may take from 15-25 minutes depending on your hob/ saucepan but all in all this is real fudge fast! I have been to a number of fudge making facilities, including one in Amish country Pennsylvania and I have the greatest respect for their intricate and painstaking methods that produce delicious and timeless fudge. Thing is - I don't have a steel kettle over a fire or a giant slab of marble to work with and sometimes even a busy girl with a tiny kitchen needs fudge! So a few years ago I started working on a recipe for fast fudge. Like any novice fudge maker I started with a traditional recipe that my mum gave me. This recipe called for large quantities of butter, sugar and evaporated milk. I stood and stirred and stood and stirred and stirred and stirred and waited and waited and eventually ended up with more fudge than I could ever eat or share. Don't get me wrong the fudge was delicious but hardly worth all that stirring. So I worked on changing the recipe and after much trial and error (emphasis on the error) I finally discovered a method that produces a fast fudge with the perfect combination of smoothness and texture.

Simultaneously smooth and textured

There are a few points that need to be gotten out of the way straight off the bat. Firstly the key to great fudge is temperature so you NEED a sugar thermometer!! I spent years making fudge without a thermometer and it works but it's pure hit and miss. Secondly it's not essential but it's better if you have a heavy based saucepan as this will reduce the amount of brown bits in the fudge and reduce the likelihood of burning.  Finally my recipe uses condensed milk instead of evaporated, but I then add water, this makes no sense right?! Well in my experience fudge needs to boil, so it needs something to boil off. Condensed milk has less water, and some sugar has already been dissolved into it, therefore this way I control the amount of water to ensure the all important boiling but reduce the overall cooking time.

15 Minute Fudge

1 x 375g Can of Condensed Milk
300g Brown Caster Sugar
100g Butter (diced)
100ml warm water
1.5 tsp vanilla

Add all the ingredients accept the vanilla into a heavy based saucepan and turn the heat on low. Stir continuously until all the butter has melted. Then insert the sugar thermometer  and start to increase the heat under the saucepan very gradually, stirring continuously (I cannot emphasis this enough - turn on the radio, put your phone beside you and get someone to watch the baby because you will be standing beside this saucepan for the next 10-15 minutes or else your fudge will be burnt).

Once the temperature hits 115C (the soft ball stage) remove from the heat. Give the fudge a minute or two to cool before adding the vanilla extract. Then stir the fudge vigorously as it starts to cool and thicken. Just as the mixture starts to appear duller pour it into a pre-lined tin and then leave it cool. Once cool cut it into bite-sized squares and enjoy =)

A tower of vanilla-y decadent deliciousness

Brown Bear Cupcakes

It has been a while since I have actually eaten chocolate, 12 days precisely. Therefore I must eat vicariously through my blog. A few weeks ago I wanted to make a cupcake for the Dr Oetker Cupcake competition. I slightly mis-interpreted the aims of the competition but I am still happy with what I achieved, so this is what I achieved using Dr Oetker products only, btw this is not sponsored or anything like that (I wish, right?) but it needed to be mentioned since the parameters were relevant to the process.

Brown Bear Cupcakes

These might better be described as snack-cakes. They are half-way between a cupcake and a brownie and they were inspired by my sweet and wonderful bf who was completely obsessed with the Bears in Berlin (Dr Oetker german connection, get it?!) and you likes chocolate but also likes to be able to have more than one without feeling greedy. Therefore these are smaller than normal cupcakes and lighter than normal brownies. However they do have a little fudge center, kinda - remember the parameters but they turned out more like little fudge chips, that were amazing delicious!!

 

Brown Bear Cupcakes

125g Butter

150g Caster Sugar

50ml yoghurt

1 whole Egg

2 Egg Yolks

200g Plain white cake flour

75g Cocao Powder

1 teaspoon Baking powder

20ml espresso

150g dark chocolate chips

100g mini fudge pieces

Preheat your oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4. Beat together your butter and Sugar until light and fluffy. In seperate bowls sieve your dry ingredients together, adding the chocolate chips after sieving, and beat together your eggs, yoghurt and coffee. Then add the wet and dry ingredients and mix only enough to combine, the muffin method if you will.

Line your muffin tin with cupcake liners and spoon in your mixture. These cakes are designed to be snack cakes so only spoon in 1 tablespoon of mixture to each. Then place 4-5 fudge pieces into the center of each mixture and cover these with the mixture as shown below.

Bake for15-20 minutes or until a toothpick (NB - placed in the side) comes out clean. Turn them out to cool on a wire wrack. What you now have are delicious little brownie 2 bite cupcakes with a fudgie center and my bf says they are really good just as they are but I'm a perfectionist I need to decorate them.

 

To decorate these I used a range of Dr Oetker products including their easy swirl icing canister, silver simmer spray and golden balls. However to make them my own I also had to include this little wooden looking bear stamp.I made circles from fondant and stamped them with a bear stamp we bought in germany last Christmas. I let them dry and then, using a course brush, painted them with brown food colouring gel and water mixed. They came out quite well I think and added an interesting little touch. I would recommend you try this recipe and decorate whatever way you like. Enjoy.

One has been stolen already, trust me they go fast!

 

Mocha-rons - Mocha macarons with an obnoxious name

You know it's summer when my house is full of macarons. I enjoy this delicious treat at any time of the year but the combination of sweetness and light texture feels just perfect during the sometimes hot but always humid days of summer. So you can expect many more posts of a similar nature, including hopefully one with the wonderful and hilarious decidedlydelicious.

As an affirmation of my ability to control things in my life, even in the smallest way possible, I have given up chocolate for a month, it's a good thing that I don't tweet because all it would say is 'chocolate, chocolate, want chocolate,' at the moment. Before starting this ridiculous and masochistic journey I did however enjoy quite the final hoorah and these were a part of that.

I wanted to experiment with a coffee macarons concept, and I always like playing with the macaron shell that so many people revere and respect because, well why not. The playing with the shell took a couple of forms but the best was the sprinkle of cocoa powder as it made the macarons look like the frothy top of a coffee drink. So the chocolate filling was the obvious glue for the conceptual mess, plus who doesn't like coffee and chocolate together?!

Can I have a medium Americano and one large cup of macarons ;)

Mocha Macarons

125g Ground Almonds
175g Icing Sugar
2 tsp Instant Espresso powder (This has to be one of those over-priced powdered real coffee things)
3 egg whites (aged)
75g White Caster Sugar
3/8 tsp cream of tartar

Cocao Powder to decorate

Chocolate filling of choice ( I used nutella, but that was mostly out of laziness/desire to get these in
                                               my mouth faster)


In a clean bowl beat your aged, cold egg whites and cream of tartar until light and frothy, add the caster sugar slowly and beat until you have made a beautiful meringue.
Sieve together the ground almonds, icing sugar and coffee powder. Once thoroughly sieved and combined then add this to your meringue and mix until the mixture not longer forms peaks.
Pipe the mixture onto your parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Attempt to keep the macarons the same size.

Once you have piped all the macarons onto the cookie sheets (this mixture fills about 2 cookie sheets) then decorate with cocoa powder. This can be done which ever way you feel like, for one sheet I sprinkled cocoa powder delicately over the macarons but on the other I literally just threw cocoa powder all over the cookie sheet (feeling like a modern artist I might add) and they both turned out pretty well. Finally allow the cookies to sit for one hour before baking for 10-12 minutes at 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4.

Let the macarons cool on the parchment paper but off the cookie sheet, remove carefully and pipe a small amount of filling in between two cookies before sandwiching them. Then enjoy which you can see I was when I initially started this post, ah three days ago, how I miss your chocolatey flavours =)