Chocolate Truffles

Last night 2017 ended and 2018 started. New Promises, New Resolutions and New Ideas.
We celebrated this new year's entry at midnight with a tasty midnight treat.
How can you go wrong with Chocolate?

Recipe Source : Jamie Oliver

The recipe is very easy and you just need to use the BEST ingredients to make it.

Ingredients:
Cooking Chocolate (70%) - 250 gms
Cream - 125 gms
Butter - 25 gms
Roasted and powdered nut (I used Almonds)* - 50 gms

Method:
Grate the chocolate (FINELY) and place in a glass bowl.
Heat the cream to boiling point and add in the butter. Let the butter melt.
Pour this over the chocolate and mix well.
The chocolate will melt.

Mix again after 2 - 3 minutes to be sure that all the pieces have melted.
Put this mixture is the fridge for 2 hours to set it.
After 2 hours, scoop out a small ball, roll it in your hands and coat with the nut powder.
Truffles are ready!!
* Place the nuts in a single layer in an oven proof vessel and bake at 190 for 6-10 minutes. Cool and powder.

Beetroot Chocolate Cake by Ross Burden

Super MOIST chocolate cake.

Ross Burden - Model, Celebrity Chef and once voted the most eligible bachelor of UK!

But he is no more. He passed away on 17 July 2014.

This is my tribute to the Master Chef from New Zealand.

Imagine a chocolate cake with Beetroot...Crazy. But trust me, it is AMAZING!!

Notes:

*This recipe uses beetroot puree. I found that if I used 300 gms of sugar as the original recipe needed, the cake is very sweet, especially as it has a ganache on top. So, I used only 100 gms.

Ingredients:

Beetroot - 2 large

Sugar (powdered) - 100 to 150 gms*

Eggs - 3

Maida / all purpose flour - 200 gms

Cocoa powder -30 gms

Baking soda - 1 1/2 tsp

Salt - 1/4 tsp

Vegetable oil / butter - 240 ml

Dark chocolate - 85 gms

Vanilla Extract - 1 tsp

Ganache:

Heavy cream + milk - 200 ml

Cooking dark chocolate - 200 gms, broken

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 180 C for 10 minutes.

2. Grease a 10 inch cake tin and keep aside. If you wish, line it too. Mine is non-stick with removable bottom.

3. Peel and cube the beetroot. Cook in a covered vessel with just enough water. Keep adding more water, as required. Once it gets well cooked, cool the beetroot and puree.

 Use only 300 gms of this Beetroot puree.

4. Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder. Keep aside.

5. Melt the 85 gms of cooking chocolate on a double boiler or microwave high in 15 second pulses while stirring often till melted.

Method:

Beat the sugar and oil / butter until sugar melts.

Adds egg one at a time and beat well.

Add in the beetroot puree, melted chocolate and vanilla.

Mix well.

Now fold in the sieved flour mixture. Do not over-beat.

Pour into the prepared tray.

Bake for 30 minutes and check with a skewer to see if the insides are cooked. (It should come out clean.)

If not done, cook for 5 more minutes.

Once done, cool in tray for 10 minutes and then unmould.

Preparing ganache:

Heat the cream and milk until it nearly boils.

Pour over the broken cooking chocolates. Stir until the chocolate melts.

Pour this ganache over the warm cake. 

Black Forest cake

If you can make a cake in 4 minutes and then add some extra ingredients to take it to another level, why not?

Ingredients:
Basic Chocolate cake - 2
Whipping cream - 1 cup
Powdered sugar - 1 tbsp
Vanilla essence - 1 tsp
Water - 1 1/4 cup
Sugar - 4 tbsp
Cherry / Raspberry / Strawberry Jam (not pineapple) - 2 tbsp
Chocolate bar shaved *- 1 1/2 cups
Cherry / Strawberry - 1/4 cup chopped and some left whole

Preparation:
1. Beat the chilled whipping cream with the powdered sugar and essence until it can hold soft peaks. Do NOT overbeat or it will curdle.
Make a cone (use your milk cover) and fill some cream in it.
Refridgerate both the cone and whipped cream until use.
2. Boil the water with the sugar until sugar dissolves. Then add in the jam and Mix till the jam mixes well. Boil for a further minute.This is your syrup. Cool and refridgerate.
3. * Freeze the chocolate bar and use a peeler or chips-maker to make shavings of it. Place in freezer until use.
4. Make sure the cakes are at room temperature before you begin.

Assembling:
Take both the cakes and soak it with the jam syrup. The cakes must be soaked in syrup.
Now spread 2 tbsp of cream on top of 1 cake.
Add some chopped fruits on top of the cream.
Place the other cake on top of the cream.
Spread the rest of the cream all over the cake.
Cover with the chocolate shavings and pipe some cream. Place some fruit on top.
Chill before serving.

Pictorial:

Chocolate torte

Can you improve on Chocolate?
Yes....Try this silky smooth Chocolate torte.
EASY recipe.

Ingredients :
Cooking chocolate with 50% cocoa - 1 and 1/2 cups
Heavy cream (like rich's) - 1 cup
Coffee powder (nescafe) - 1 tbsp mixed in 1 tbsp water
Eggs - 6
Powdered sugar - 1/2 cup
All purpose flour / maida - 1/4 cup
Butter to grease

Oven temperature : 200C

Method:
Preheat the oven for 10 minutes.

Keep 2 cups of water for boiling.

Line a 10 inch spring form cake tin, 3 times with aluminium foil. This will prevent water from entering inside.
Then grease the insides of the cake tin.
Keep a roasting pan / large plate with 1 inch sides which can accommodate the spring form ready.
(A pictorial explanation is given at the very end)

Break the cooking chocolate into small pieces.
Heat the cream till boiling point, while stirring continuously.
Add this to the broken chocolate and beat till you get a smooth cream.
Add the coffee mixture to this and beat again.
This is your ganache.

Whisk the eggs one at a time with the sugar and flour.
Once all the eggs are used up, beat for another 2 minutes till the mixture becomes nearly white and doubled.
Now add the hot ganache in batches to the egg mixture and beat well.
Pour into the prepared tray.

Place the aluminium lined spring form tin on top of the large plate.
Pour the boiling water into the large plate / tray till it is about 1 cm high.
Place this inside the preheated oven for 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes, it will be wobbly in the middle, but do not cook more than 15 minutes.

Take the tray out of the water bath and keep to cool.
Once it reaches room temperature, place inside the fridge overnight.
The next day remove from the spring form pan and invert to remove the aluminium foil.
Then re invert so that the good side is up.

Before slicing, place your knife in hot water, dry it and use it to get clean slices.

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Pictorial explanation of the spring form cake tin prep

Various equipments. Chopper, beater, cake tin, large plate and aluminium foil

Springform cake tin. The base is removable.

Cover the base with large sheets of aluminium foil thrice.

Fold the extra aluminium foil over the bottom of the base

Clip the top to the base

Now bring back the aluminium foil around the base.

This will prevent water from entering the cake tin.

Choose a large plate / frying pan which accommodates the cake tin.

Fill the bottom plate with boiling water.

Place the lined cake tin over this large plate filled with water.

Grease the insides of the cake tin. Pour the prepared torte batter in.

Doughnnut

Vacations are here! Time for some high carb diet...
My mom always says that vacations are the time "kids put on height and weight"!!

                                                                 DOUGHNUTS!!
Sweet, deep fried and smothered in chocolate!
Each recipe I found had eggs in it or had too much 'work' (read: knead, reknead, etc!)
This recipe by Nisha Madhulika is easy to make and my kids approved the taste!!

Yield : 16

Ingredients:
Maida / All Purpose Flour -2 cups
Sugar - 2 tbsp
Yeast -1 tsp
Butter - 1/4 cup (room temperature)
salt - 1 pinch
Milk - between 1/2 and 3/4 cup - lukewarm
Oil for deep frying
Powdered sugar - for coating
Chocolate for glazing

Take a large deep bowl.
Mix together the flour, sugar, yeast and salt.
Add in the butter and mix till the flour resembles bread crumbs.
Use the milk, little at a time to make a smooth dough.
Knead the dough well for 5 minutes.
Dust the rolling surface and roll out the dough into a circle of 1/2 inch thickness.
Then cut out doughnuts using a big circle (I used a katori) and then a small circle in the middle (I used a medicine measure)

Use the inside bits and the outside to make more doughnuts.
To prevent drying, apply some oil o the tops of each doughnut ring.
Keep covered  and allow to rise for 2 hours.
After 2 hours, heat the oil in a deep kadai / dish and keep the flame low.
Fry till golden and drain on absorbent paper.

As you can see in the above picture, the oil was too hot when I fried the balls.
Keep the flame low.

Take each doughnut and immerse in the powdered sugar. Shake off excess sugar and keep aside.

Melt the chocolate on a double boiler and cool a little.
Dip one side of the doughnut in the chocolate.
Your Chocolate doughnut is ready.

You can fill your doughnut with cream or jam, if you please.
Decoration options include sprinkles, toasted nuts, dried coconut etc..

10 minute cupcake

Husband : I was hungry so I ate I one of those cupcakes you had baked for the kids. It was good. So I had 1 more. Then 1 more!!

Total count : 3!!

And the best part is they are very easy to make!!
When I made it , the first time, they came out so yummy, I was forced to make another batch for the kids to take to school. But it was so easy, I did not mind at all!

After I send the kids off, the first thing I did was to call up my friends and share the easy recipe with them! They too hit jackpots!! One of them even made some for a charity sale at school!!

If you don't mind beating eggs in your mixer / mixie bowl, then this recipe gets ready in a jiffy.

Yield - 10-12 medium cupcakes

Ingredients:

Sugar - 1/2 cup, powdered

Oil - 1/2 cup

Eggs - 2

Milk - 1/4 cup

Maida / all purpose flour - 1 cup

Baking powder - 1 tsp

Essence - 1 tsp

(strawberry concentrate, orange essence, almond essence, vanilla)

Options:

If you want to bake chocolate cup cakes, then just remove 2 tbsp of flour and add 2 tbsp of cocoa powder. Use vanilla / chocolate / orange essence.

To be done ahead:

Preheat the oven to 180 C.

Line 12 cupcake moulds and keep ready.

Method:

Sieve the flour and baking powder with cocoa powder (if using) and keep aside.

Beat the oil and sugar for 1 minute.

Beat in 1 egg at a time.

Mix the milk with the essence and add to the sugar + oil + egg mix.

Next add the sieved flour and baking powder. Do not beat the flour in, just mix well.

Pour into the prepared cupcake moulds and bake for 10-15 minutes.

The skewer must come out clean when inserted in the middle.

Super easy brownie

When chocolate cake craving is at its highest, then there is only one thing to do. Bake one. Or buy one.

What if your craving could be satiated in 4 minutes??

Super easy - super tasty recipe. 

You do need a microwave safe mug. 

Ingredients:

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup flour/maida

2 tbsp cocoa powder

2 tbsp oil

3 tbsp water

Put the measured dry powders into the cup.

Now add 2 tbsp oil. I used olive oil. Vegetable oil works fine too.

Then 3 tbsp water.

Mix thoroughly.

Consistency...

Microwave high (100% power) for 1 min 40 sec.

Enjoy your brownie! How easy is that?

Chocolate banana cake

Chocolate - yum! 

Over ripe bananas - throw away.

Mix these 2 together and bake a great chocolate cake!

Oven temperature - 180C 

Baking time - 35 min

Mix together in 1 large bowl :

Powdered sugar - 1 cup

Refined oil - 1/4 cup

Milk - 1/4 cup

Water - 1/2 cup

Egg - 1

Ripe banana mashed - 1/2 cup

Sieve together in another bowl

Maida - 1 cup

Baking powder - 3/4 tsp

Baking soda - 3/4 tsp

Cocoa powder - 1/2 cup + 1 tbsp

Salt - 1 pinch

Now mix in the dry ingredients into the wet mix and fold in. Pour into a oiled and lined baking tray (9 inch * 7 inch). Decorate with sliced almonds and Bake in a preheated oven @ 180C till skewer comes out clean, about 30-40 minutes.

I have used Hershey's chocolate syrup over the cake. But that is just not necessary!

Eggless Self Saucing Chocolate Pudding

Eggless pudding which tastes like heaven. I could not take a nice picture of the same with ice-cream as my kids could just not wait to eat!

Grease a 1-lt tin and keep aside.
Preheat oven to 180 C

Sauce mix:
Brown sugar - 3/4 cup
Cocoa powder - 1/4 cup
Boil 1 1/4 cup of water and mix the above ingredients together to get a smooth paste. Keep aside.

Cake mix:
Maida / all purpose flour - 1 cup
Baking powder - 3/4 tsp
Cocoa powder - 1/4 cup
Sugar powder - 3/4 cup
Milk - 1/2 cup
Butter - 45 gms

Sift all the dry ingredients together and make a well in the centre.
Heat the milk with the butter and once butter melts (milk must NOT boil) add to the dry ingredients and mix well. Pour into the greased tray.

Now pour the sauce on top of the flour mix very carefully and bake in oven for 40 minutes.
Serve hot with vanilla ice cream. Heaven!

Black forest

Chocolate sponge cake - 2
Sugar - 3 tbsp
Whipping cream - 1 cup
Cherries - 10
Chocolate grated - 1 cup
(opt) Liquor - 1 tbsp

If using canned cherries; use the syrup in the can  in place of sugar water.

Dissolve the sugar in a cup of water and add liquor (if using) to this.

Whip the cream till soft peaks form. Taste and add sugar , if necessary.
Stone the cherries and mince 5 into small pieces. Keep 5 intact.
Keep the grated chocolate refridgerated until use.

Take one sponge cake and soak with sugar syrup.
Spread 3 or 4 tbsp whipped cream on top.
Arrange the minced cherries over this.
Now layer the other sponge on top and soak with the rest of the sugar syrup.
Spread the left over cream over the top and the sides so that the cake gets covered completely.
Sprinkle the grated chocolate on the top and arrange the cherries over the cake.
Chill before serving.

4 minute Chocolate Sponge Cake Microwave recipe

What a wonderful recipe!
A basic chocolate cake which can be made in just 4 minutes in a microwave.
I have also written down the timing and temperature setting of the oven, if you so wish.
Top it with some sugar syrup and decorate with some whipped cream or pour over some chocolate ganche. Your cake moves to another level!
You can make the famous Black Forest cake with this recipe.

Ingredients:
Egg - 2
Sugar , powdered - 3/4 cup
Cocoa powder - 2 tbsp
Maida / All purpose flour - 1/2 cup
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Milk - 1/4 cup
Butter (melted) / Refined oil / margarine /dalda - 1/2 cup
Vanilla essence - 1/2 tsp

Method:
Sift together the cocoa powder , baking powder and flour.
Beat the eggs and sugar well.

Into this add the melted fat (butter or oil) and continue beating.
Add the flour and milk alternately beating well after each addition - starting and ending with flour.
The batter will be thin.

Pour into a greased lined (bottom) tray and microwave HIGH for 4 minutes.
Leave inside the microwave for a further 4 minutes.
Unmould only after cooling.
If you wish to bake in the oven , then pour into a greased baking tin and bake in a preheated oven at 200C for 15 minutes.