Coconut Cupcakes with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting
Cupcakes
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup self raising flour
1 cup dessicated coconut
2-3 tbs milk1. Beat butter and sugar till creamy.
2. Mix in the eggs one at a time followed by vanilla till smooth.
3. Mix in the flour followed by coconut till just come together but not overmixed.
4. Fold in the milk gently till no streaks of flour or milk is seen.
5. Pour into prepared cupcake moulds and bake in preheated oven at 180 C for 15-20 minutes till done when tested. Let cool on wire rack.
Frosting
1/4 cup butter1/2 cup cream cheese
1/2 cup icing sugar
1/2 cup flaked coconut
1. While the cupcakes are cooling, make the frosting. Beat butter, cream cheese and icing sugar till creamy and light.
2. Fold in the flaked coconut till you get a smooth consistency.
3. Gently slather the frosting generously onto the cooled cupcakes with a small spatula or use a piping bag if you have one to decorate the cupcake.
Makes 18 cupcakes
Peanut Butter Crumble Cake (adapted from Baking Bites)
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
3/4 cup milk
1 large egg
1 cup crunchy peanut butter, room temperature
1. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, brown sugar, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Beat in softened butter until the mixture resembles wet sand. Remove 3/4 cup of the mixture to a medium bowl and set aside.
2. Add milk and egg to the large bowl with the remaining flour mixture. Mix well, until no streaks of flour remain. Do not over-mix. Pour into prepared pan.
3. Add peanut butter to medium bowl with the remaining 3/4 cup flour mixture. Mix well and crumble (or drop in clumps, as the mixture will be thick) onto the cake batter in the pan.
4. Bake in preheated oven at 180 C for about 30 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack before slicing.
No Fat Banana Cupcakes (adapted from Too Many Chefs)
1 pot of plain yoghurt (125 ml)
2 very ripe medium bananas (mashed)
2 yogurt pots of sugar
3 yogurt pots of plain flour
2 eggs
2 tsp baking powder
1. Mix the mashed bananas with the yoghurt till well blended.2. Beat until smooth and then add the eggs one by one, beating after each one until smooth.
3. Gradually add the sugar and then the rest of the dry ingredients.
4. Pour the batter into lined cupcake molds, filling them 2/3 of the way.
5. Bake in preheated oven at 180 C for 20 minutes, until golden on top and cooked through. Test with a wooden toothpick to make sure: if it comes out wet, the cakes are not done.
The texture of the cupcakes was really interesting and not like any cupcakes I've ever made. If left for a few days, they actually got quite a bit sticky but once heated up, they tasted the same as when they first came out of the oven. Overall, a really quick and lovely cupcake recipe for when you've got overripe bananas and leftover yoghurt to use them up.
So this is the famous chocolate chip cookies recipe that had the whole world raving about. I have to admit that it is a very good chocolate chip cookie but I did tweak it quite a bit that I actually made 40 small cookies from just half the original recipe. I can't imagine how big the original ones would be. I would love to try this out again one day, when I'm feeling very indulgent, and actually create those 6 giant cookies with maybe walnuts or pecans.
Jacques Torres Famous Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 cups plain flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp coarse salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup dark chocolate chips or chopped bitter chocolateSea salt
1. Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Set aside.
2. Cream butter and sugars together until very light. Add egg followed by the vanilla. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Drop chocolate pieces in and incorporate them without breaking them.
3. Press plastic wrap against dough and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. Dough may be used in batches, and can be refrigerated for up to 72 hours.
4. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 180 C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat. Set aside.
4. Using a teaspoon, roll dough into 1 inch balls and lightly flatten the dough onto prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt and bake until golden brown but still soft, 15 to 18 minutes. Transfer sheet to a wire rack for 10 minutes, then slip cookies onto another rack to cool a bit more. Repeat with remaining dough, or reserve dough, refrigerated, for baking remaining batches the next day.
Potato Chip Chocolate Chip Cookies (adapted from The Search for the Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie by Gwen Steege)
1/2 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups plain flour
1 tsp baking soda2 cups plain salted potato chips, coarsely crushed
1½ cups dark chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts – optional (I used peanuts)
1. Cream butter, sugars and eggs. Stir in vanilla. Add flour and baking soda, then potato chips, then chocolate chips and nuts. Mix after each addition.
2. Line a baking sheet with baking paper and drop teaspoons onto baking sheet (they will spread a lot). Bake at 180 C for 10-12 minutes. Yielded 3 dozen.
I'm definitely going to make these again. The salty and sweet really complimented each other and I love how the chips gave that added crunch and dimension. I'll try adding oats into the mix next time around.
I was in a mad mood for all things cookies and decided on trying my own spin on cookie dough brownies and cookie dough cupcakes. I decided to use the chocolate chip cookies recipe by David Lebovitz and the brownies and cupcakes recipes are by Jamie Oliver. The end results was fantastic and so sinfully delicious. The brownies was fudgey and gooey with the cookie topping lightly crunchy and chewy. The cupcakes was great even though I made the mistake of putting the cupcake batter first instead of the cookie dough which resulted in the hole in the cupcake design there. My friends thought it was cute but oh well, at least they tasted great.Great Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe (adapted from The Great Book of Chocolate by David Lebovitz)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking soda1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup walnuts or pecans, toasted and chopped
1. Beat the sugars and butters together until smooth. Mix in the egg, vanilla, and baking soda. Stir together the flour and salt, then mix them into the batter. Mix in the chocolate chips and nuts.2. Scoop the cookie dough into 2-tablespoon balls and place 8 balls, spaced 4 inches (10cm) apart, on each of the baking sheets.3. Bake in preheated oven at 150 C for 18 minutes, or until pale golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.4. Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Fifteen Chocolate Brownies (adapted from Cook with Jamie)
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup best quality dark chocolate, at least 70% cocoa solids, broken up
3/4 cup dried cherries or chopped nuts (optional)
4 tbs cocoa powder, sifted
4 tbs plain flour, sifted
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup caster sugar
3 large free range eggs1. In a large bowl over simmering water, melt the butter and the chocolate and mix until smooth. Add the cherries and nuts if using, (I used crushed pecans) and stir together.
2. In a separate bowl, mix cocoa powder, flour, baking powder, and sugar, then add this to the chocolate mixture. Beat in the eggs and mix well until you have a silky consistency.
3. Pour brownie mixture into prepared pan and bake in preheated oven at 180 C for around 30 minutes. You don't want to overcook them so the brownies should be lightly springy on the outside but still gooey in the middle. Allow to cool in the pan, the transfer to wire rack to cool further before slicing them into chunky square.
All purpose Cupcakes or Sponge cake recipe (adapted from Cook with Jamie)
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup caster sugar
4 large free range eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract or zest of 1 lemon
1 cup self raising flour
Beat butter and sugar till creamy, light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time beating each one in well before adding the next, then fold in the flour and lemon zest or vanilla.
To make cupcakes: simply pour into prepared tin and bake for 20 minutes in preheated oven at 180 C
For the sponge cake: pour into prepared pan(s) and bake for 20 minutes in preheated oven at 180 C.
Allow the cakes to cool before slicing for fillings or frosting.
Cookie Dough Brownies
Prepare the cookie dough and brownie recipes before hand.
When you've poured the brownie mix into the pan, smooth it out as best you can. Top the brownie mixture with the cookie dough in clumps all over. It doesn't have to look pretty or neat, just as long as the cookie dough covers the brownie mix. Bake as per usual the brownie time. The cookie topping will be browned but may not be as crunchy as a usual cookie is. Re: picture; I didn't have enough cookie dough leftover because I used half the batch for the cupcakes.
Cookie Dough Cupcakes
Prepare the cookie dough and cupcake recipe before hand.
To get the odd looking cavity like cupcakes in my pictures, pour the cupcake batter first followed by a tablespoon of the cookie dough into the center of the batter. But if you want a proper looking cupcake, put a tablespoon of cookie dough first into the prepared cupcake tin followed by the cupcake batter. Bake as per usual the cupcake time. The cookie dough will be soft and not fully baked like a cookie.
