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Posts Tagged ‘cake’

Carrot and olive oil cake

Posted in desserts, healthy, tagged , , , on May 15, 2013 | 2 Comments »

Do you like carrots?


The bright orange colour?
The happy crunch it makes when it meets your teeth?
The gentle sweetness?


I do.


carrot cake 1


These days I often just wash and eat them as they are – a mobile snack.


On other days when I have more energy, I cut them into sticks and eat them with a yummy yogurt-mustard-garlic dip.


So I decided it was time to use this bright and happy vegetable in a cake.


carrot cake 2


Not a carrot cake smothered in so much cream-cheese frosting that you can’t taste the carrot any more.


No way. In this cake, the carrot is the star.


carrot cake 3


It’s also really healthy and good for you. So reach for that third slice like you own it, sistah.


There’s something so happy about the colour orange, isn’t there?


Look at this freshly squeezed orange juice. Sunshine :)


carrot cake 4


I made one large cake and 2 mini cakes with this recipe.


carrot cake 5


The cake isn’t too sweet at all, and it’s crazy moist.


carrot cake 6


Here’s the recipe if you want to give it a whirl.


Carrot and olive oil cake
Recipe adapted from: The Diabetes cooking book


Prep time: 30 mins
Cook time: 90 mins
Serves: 10


Ingredients:


250 g plain flour, sifted
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
250 ml olive oil (I used Leonardo Olive oil)
100 g brown sugar
4 eggs
2 tbsp honey
juice and zest of 1 large orange, plus juice of one more
400 g carrots, roughly grated
50 g walnuts, roughly chopped
butter, for greasing


Method:


1. Preheat the oven to 160º C. Place the flour, cinnamon, and baking soda in a large bowl and mix to combine.
2. In another bowl, mix together the olive oil, sugar, eggs, honey, and juice of 1 orange. Add this to the flour mixture and mix well until smooth. Add the orange zest, carrots, and walnuts and mix to evenly distribute in the batter.
3. Grease a 9-inch round cake tin with butter and pour the batter in. Bake in the preheated oven for 90 minutes, or until set and firm.
4. Remove the cake from the oven, and while it is hot, pierce it all over with a toothpick. Drizzle the juice of 1 orange all over the cake. Let it cool in its tin and absorb the juice, before turning out onto a wire rack or serving plate. Eat warm.



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The Ulimate Baileys Cake

Posted in desserts, tagged , , , , , on April 29, 2013 | 8 Comments »

Sometimes, just sometimes, when you bake something, you know baking fairies are hovering around you in your kitchen.


There’s a magical feeling in the air. Everything works just the way it’s supposed to.


You’ll find yourself smiling.


And you’ll know because the cake will bake evenly, and to just the right degree – firm, yet soft.


The frosting will almost whip itself up into a fluffy bowl of creamy, delicious goodness.


And when you cut a slice and taste it, you’ll know you’ve been given special baking blessings.


This is what happened with this wonderful cake.


Baileys cake 1


Look how the yummy whipped frosting peeps out so sweetly.


Baileys cake 2


The cake itself was buttery and soft, with a hint of cinnamon and chocolate. The frosting, loaded with Baileys was sweet and so decadent.


Baileys cake 3


And look, just look at this slice.


Baileys cake 4


Come to Momma.


Baileys cake 5


If you love Baileys, you will love this. It’s an explosion of subtle flavours in your mouth- sometimes coffee, sometimes sugary, sometimes chocolaty.


Baileys cake 6


It’s really quite simple to make too! Give it a whirl and see :)


The Ulimate Baileys Cake


Largely adapted from: Irish Genealogy Toolkit


Prep time: 25 mins
Cook time: 45-50 mins
Serves: 10


Ingredients:


For the cake


100 g butter, softened, plus a little extra for greasing
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 heaped tsp cocoa powder
175 g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
200 caster sugar
2 eggs, separated
120 ml Baileys (any flavour)
a big handful of chocolate chips


For the frosting


75 g butter, softened
175 g icing sugar, plus a little more if needed
2 tbsp Baileys


For the icing top


100 g icing sugar
2 tsp Baileys, plus a little more if needed


Method:


For the cake


1. Preheat the oven to 180º C and grease a 6 inch round tin (with a removable base) with butter. Sift together the the salt, cinnamon, cocoa powder, flour, and baking powder. Set aside.
2. Whisk the butter and sugar together in a large bowl. Add the egg yolks and mix well again. Now add the flour mixture and the Baileys alternately, in small quantities, mixing well until you have a smooth batter.
3. Whisk the egg whites until stiff. Mix one spoon of the stiff whites into the batter and stir vigorously. Then add the rest of the egg whites and fold into the batter very gently.
4. Pour the batter into the greased tin and bake for 45-50 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin. Once cool, remove and leave on a wire rack, before slicing in half horizontally.


For the frosting


Whisk together all the ingredients, adding a little more sugar if you like it stiffer. Set aside.


For the icing top


Mix together the ingredients until you have a sludgy icing mixture. Set aside.


To assemble


1. Place the bottom layer of the cake on a serving plate. Spread the frosting evenly over this layer, and cover with the top layer.
2. Pour the icing over the top layer, and immediately scatter over the chocolate chips. Cut into slices and serve.


Thank you my baking fairies. Please make my house your home :)


Baileys cake 7


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Easy egg-less chocolate cake

Posted in desserts, family, tagged , , , on March 22, 2013 | 10 Comments »

You guys know HOW much I love eggs. I first revealed my undying love for them in this post on Creamy baked eggs.


I love their versatility – how you can bake, fry, boil, steam, and poach them. I love how they add their wonderful creaminess to everything you drop them in. They make soups yummier, pies glossier, sandwiches dreamier, and no self-respecting dessert is ever egg-less.


Or so I thought.


I’m the first person to stick up my nose at “egg-less” cakes. I view them with great suspicion, kinda how I view math.


Math problems


But a couple of days ago, I had to bake an egg-less cake. It was for my cousin’s birthday and some of her friends don’t eat eggs. (I need to meet them and set them straight.)


I wanted this cake to be gooey and moist. And that’s quite the opposite of what egg-less desserts usually are.


Then I chanced upon this blog. One look at the picture and I knew I had to try it.


The batter was the first sign this was going to be good.


Egg-less cake batter


The cake came out crazy moist and utterly chocolately. I could not believe that it had no eggs. How was this possible?


Egg-less cake 1


I think the magic ingredients are the yogurt and the coffee mix. Whatever it is, this has become my favourite chocolate cake and you’ve got to try it.


Egg-less cake 2


Sorry, eggs. I still love you. I promise.


Egg-less chocolate cake
Largely adapted from: Maria’s menu


Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 35-40 mins
Serves: 10


Inside the cake


Ingredients:


For the cake


220 g plain flour, sifted
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
6 heaped tbsp cocoa powder
165 g sugar
110 ml vegetable oil, plus extra for greasing
1 tbsp strong coffee powder dissolved in 50 ml boiling water
50 ml milk
50 g yogurt
1 tsp vanilla extract


For the frosting


60 g butter, at room temperature
2 heaped tbsp cocoa powder
150 g icing sugar, plus more if needed
2 tbsp hot milk, plus more if needed
1 tsp vanilla extract
sprinkles, optional


Egg-less cake 3


Method:


For the cake


1. Preheat the oven to 180º C. I used a foil tray to bake this cake since I had to transport it, but you can also you a regular 8-inch round cake tin. Grease and line with parchment.
2. In a large mixing bowl, add all the dry ingredients. Make a gap in the centre and add the wet ingredients. Whisk everything thoroughly until well combined. You should have a smooth batter with no lumps.
3. Pour into the greased tray/tin and bake for 35-40 minutes. Leave to cool on a wire rack.


For the frosting and assembling


1. Mix all the frosting ingredients (minus the sprinkles) and whisk together thoroughly till you have a smooth frosting. You can add more icing sugar to make it stiffer, or loosen it with more milk if you like.
2. Once the cake has cooled, transfer it to a serving plate (if you baked in a tin) and cover the top with frosting. Scatter over sprinkles if you wish. This cake is gooey, and doesn’t slice very neatly, but that’s a small price to pay for the yumminess :) If you prefer neat slices, chill for about an hour before slicing.


Look at this happy face. This is why I bake :)


Happy face!



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The story of how I met George and Gary (Masterchef Australia judges) thrice in two days

Posted in Bloggers meet, friends, tagged , , , , on November 19, 2012 | 23 Comments »

“Dreams, if they’re any good, are always a little bit crazy. ”
― Ray Charles


*warning*- this post has (much) more than the legal recommended amount of: pictures, smiling, gushing, more smiling, silliness, and general happiness.


A few weeks ago I had a chance to live out one of my dreams.


I need to wind back a bit here, so stay with me please darlin.


When Masterchef Australia first started airing in India, it took only the first episode for me to realise I’m gonna be hooked.


Not only was this a great food show, it was a great show. Full stop. And I was madly in love with it.


I would rush home from where ever I was, feign headaches to cancel social appointments, and drop everything to be home and in front of the TV at 9pm.


2 reasons for the show’s aforementioned greatness:


1. It’s all about the food. (No useless drama like in the Indian version or random bursts of cruelty like in the American version.)
2. The cute judges.


I’m telling you, George, Gary, and Matt – the fantastic Masterchef Australia judges are the secret ingredient that make the show such a resounding success.


They know their stuff, but are incredibly humble.
They’re funny as hell and are such great teachers.
And they bring a wonderful touch of real life to the show that makes viewers like me feel like we really know them.


I can never ever get tired of Gary’s adorable smile, Matt thoughtfully rubbing his chin, or George shouting out his famous catchphrase “Boom boom shake the room”.


I have learnt so much from the show- from how to make crackling and stuffing a chicken, to releasing a cake from the tin and plating beautifully. But what I’ve really taken away from the show is following your passion, doing what you love and doing it well, being decent and humble and happy and wonderful. Those are the things I believe Masterchef Australia stands for.


Now back to the present.


Through a wonderful thing called Twitter I found out that Gary and George were coming to my city.
I was flabbergasted and semi psychotic with excitement. I could not form words. I was DYING to meet them.


I spoke to people in the food business, friends, bloggers, my boss, and every other person remotely connected to food to see if I had a shot at meeting these two cuties.


I decided I would do whatever it takes to meet them at least once.


Do you know how I know dreams come true? I met them thrice. Yes, thrice. In two days.


(Side note: I’m offering stalking classes soon. Please let me know if you’re interested.)


Let’s talk about these monumental meetings one by one, shall we?


First meeting or When our eyes first met: A book signing at Landmark.
I bought their book, stood in a line, and got autographs and pictures!


Here they are!



High point: Gary drew in my book. He drew earrings on George’s face.


Second meeting or Love in pastel shades: At Olive Beach restaurant for breakfast.
Some fabulous bloggers and some of the city’s top chefs met George over breakfast at this gorgeous restaurant.



I asked Georgie the first question! :) And then spent the rest of the morning gushing over him.


Gushing picture 1.



Gushing picture 2.



High point: Me giving George some dark chocolate Kahlua truffles I made for him, and him saying, “Awww. Thank you darling.”


Darling. He said it. His words. Yes. Swoon.


Third meeting or I can’t freakin’ believe this is happening: Cooking for George and Gary at Nature’s Basket! Yeah, you read that right.


I actually won a chance to cook for my culinary heroes. And they tasted my dish.


Here I am explaining my dish.



Honestly I don’t know how I got anything done. Can you do anything except melt into a ball of mush when you see this smile?



But I did. I made a Deconstructed chocolate and fruit dessert. (I’m fancy like that.)
Here’s me with my dish.



And a closer look.



I also met two other wonderful contestants- Charu and Aradhika. Here they are.



What I enjoyed the most was the time I had with Gary and George. Their criticism was constructive, they were wonderfully adorable, and I didn’t want the evening to ever end.


What’s that? You want to see more pictures? Sure! :)


Here I am in a Gary and George sandwich. The best kind there is ;)



This is all of us trying to pull off a serious Masterchef pose. George nailed it.



And here’s my favourite one. No prizes for guessing why.



For those who still want more (seriously?), there’s also a video of the event here. You’ll hear and see me around halfway through. (Spoiler alert: At one point I tell George we love him because he’s chubby, and he says awwwwww.)


Needless to say I died with the cuteness.


So that’s that folks. I stalked these two Masterchef cuties. Like. A. Boss.
Wouldn’t you agree? :D


Dreams do come true. Don’t you ever stop dreaming them, love.


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It’s-all-about-the-(coffee)-frosting cake

Posted in desserts, family, tagged , , , on October 19, 2012 | 12 Comments »

You know when you’re having one of those days.


Crawling out of bed requires superhuman strength.


Your hair decides to play a cruel joke on you.


You pull out a shirt to wear and discover a button is missing.


Usually more awful things compound your already miserable day.


Things like paper cuts, annoying emails, vegetarian lunches, and people with too much attitude and too little intelligence.


It often leaves me wondering:



Sometimes I lose it and do a Dory:



Then I call my mom and she doesn’t answer the phone. Then I call my dad and he doesn’t answer. Then I call my brother and he doesn’t answer.


And I’m all like:



Then they all call back and I yell and then I feel sad because the truth is I really miss them :(


I realise I’m being very specific here, but you get the general feeling don’t ya?


When you’re feeling like that, this cake is what you need.



There is a scientific reason behind it: the proportion of the frosting to the cake is directly proportional to the good feelings you will get once it’s in your belly. And this cake is all about the frosting, baby.



Now we could just eat the frosting. And although that sounds soo wrong and soooo right at the same time, we will do the adult thing and smear it over some cake before sticking our face in it. Okay?



Look at this piece. Come to Momma.



More frosting than cake. That is my new motto. It’s a good one, wouldn’t you say?
Have a super super weekend, my darlins!


It’s-all-about-the-(coffee)-frosting cake


Prep time: 20 mins
Cook time: 25 mins
Serves: 8


Ingredients:


For the cake


80 g plain flour, sifted
40 g cocoa powder, sifted
1 tsp baking powder
120 g caster sugar, sifted
120 g butter, melted and cooled
2 eggs
4 tbsp milk
2 tbsp coffee powder
1 tsp vanilla extract


For the frosting


120 g butter, at room temperature
150 g icing sugar, sifted, plus more if needed
2-3 tsps coffee powder dissolved in 2 tsp warm water
edible sprinkles (optional)


Method:


For the cake


1. Preheat the oven to 180º C. Line a 9-inch square tin with baking parchment and grease lightly.
2. Mix the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and sugar in a bowl. Then add the butter, eggs, and milk, and stir well till you have smooth, glossy batter.
3. Add the coffee powder and vanilla extract and give it another mix.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for about 25 minutes or until the cake moves away slightly from the sides of the tin. Remove from the oven and let it cool a little in the tin. Then remove from the tin, peel off the parchment, and leave to cool completely on a wire rack.


For the frosting


1. For the best frosting evaaaaa, mix the butter, icing sugar, and coffee together. Depending on how stiff you want it, add more icing sugar and continue to mix well until you have your desired consistency. I like it quite gooey and fabulous as you can see :P
2. Smear this delicious stuff over the cooled cake and decorate with edible sprinkles, if you want. (Also, lick the bowl clean. Go ahead, I won’t tell. :D )



Feel better, don’t ya? :D



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Black forest cake

Posted in desserts, tagged , , on July 16, 2012 | 7 Comments »

So I’m really obsessed with this book.



Beautifully written- it’s strangely modern and hauntingly poetic at the same time.


The characters are so real, you’ll definitely identify with more than one.


There are forests and dragons and swords and direwolves. Seriously, how can you not love it already?


I’ve always found the name “Black forest” cake very intriguing. When I looked for the origin (secretly hoping for a tale of a dark forest shrouded in mystery and magic), I was a little disappointed to find out it was named after a very normal and non-magical German region.


What does not disappoint however, is this cake.



Indulgent, moist, and creamy- it has magical qualities :)



Too bad I can’t have a direwolf. At least I have cake. And that will suffice for now :)



Black forest cake
Adapted from: Step-by-step Baking


Prep time: 1 hour
Cook time: 40 mins
Serves: 10


Ingredients:


85 g butter, melted and cooled, plus a bit extra for greasing
6 eggs
170 g caster sugar
120 g flour, sifted
50 g cocoa powder, sifted
1 tsp vanilla extract


For the filling/topping


1X 400g tin of red cherries, including the juice
4 tbsp brandy (use Kirsch if you have it)
600 ml cream
200 g dark chocolate, grated


Method:


For the cake



1. Preheat the oven to 180º C. Line a 9-inch round baking tin with parchment paper and grease the base and sides with butter.
2. Put the eggs and sugar in a large bowl and make it sit on a saucepan filled with water. The base of the bowl should not touch the water. Put the saucepan (with the bowl over it) over a medium flame and as it starts to get warm, begin whisking the egg-sugar mixture until it is pale and thick. Remove from the heat and whisk for another 5 minutes, till it becomes a bit cool.



3. Add the flour and cocoa, spoon by spoon into the egg mixture, folding it in very gently using a spatula. Once the dry ingredients are incorporated, fold in the butter and vanilla extract as well.



Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin and bake for 40 minutes or until the cake starts coming away from the sides. Remove and transfer to a wire rack to cool.
4. Once cool, slice the cake horizontally into 2 even layers and place them on separate plates.


For the filling/topping


1. Mix the brandy in the reserved cherry juice. Slowly drizzle this over the 2 separate layers of cake. Do this a little at time: so the liquid is soaked up by the cake before you add more.
2. Pit the cherries and cut them in halves.



Whip the cream to soft peaks. Now it’s time to assemble the cake. Put the first layer down gently on the serving platter and cover the top with cream (all of it save a little) and the cherries (save some of the best cherries for the top of the cake). Top with the second layer of cake.
3. With a knife spread a little bit of cream around the sides and top of the cake and press the grated chocolate all over.



Dot the top of the cake with cherries. Serve!



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Dark chocolate and peanut butter cake

Posted in desserts, family, tagged , , , , on July 4, 2012 | 1 Comment »

Do all mothers think their children will never get fat?


This must be the case because my mother just got me this:



It’s a one kilo jar of peanut butter!


Let’s stare at it in disbelief for a minute longer, shall we?



*disbelief* turns to *complete glee* :D


My mind’s been whirling with peanut butter recipe ideas, but I got off the merry-go-round at Dark chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting station.



This cake is delicious by itself- it’s incredibly fluffy and soft and not too sweet. Like your grandmother. Add the peanut butter frosting, and watch it transform into something wicked and sexy. Like _____. (Fill in whoever floats your boat. I’d say Hugh Jackman :P )



The frosting still tastes and feels like peanut butter. It has all the gooey, stick-to-the-roof-of-your-mouth goodness that we love about peanut butter.


Fun way to start the peanut butter celebrations! Don’t you think?



Thanks Mom :)


Dark chocolate and peanut butter cake


Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 30 mins
Serves: 12


Ingredients:


150 g plain flour, sifted
90 g cocoa powder, sifted
240 g finely ground sugar, sifted
2 tbsp baking powder
2 tbsp coffee powder
240 g butter, salted is fine, but melted and cooled (plus a bit more for greasing)
1 tbsp vanilla extract
4 eggs
50 ml cream


For the peanut butter frosting


150 g peanut butter
150 ml cream


Method:


For the cake


1. Preheat the oven to 180º C. Line the base of a 9-inch round cake tin with parchment and grease the base and sides. Mix the flour, cocoa, sugar, baking powder, and coffee in a large bowl. Add the butter, vanilla, and the eggs (one at time) and mix everything together well. Stir in the cream vigorously.
2. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake in the pre-heated oven for 30 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
3. Remove and leave on a wire rack to cool before removing from the tin.


For the peanut butter frosting


1. With an electric mixer, mix the crap out of the peanut butter and cream! You’re done! :)


To assemble- Gently slice the cake horizontally in half. Slather on half the frosting and top with the top half of the cake. Spread the remaining frosting over the top of the cake. Serve! (This cake tastes best at room temperature.)



Also, have you guys checked out this fun contest that ITC is running? All you have to do is upload a picture of you having a fun moment at any of the ITC hotels and you could win a 2 night/3 day stay at any ITC hotel of your choice! Pretty cool, right? I’m entering of course. If you want to, click here.



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Whoopie!

Posted in desserts, tagged , , , , , on April 24, 2012 | 14 Comments »

I like sandwiches. My favourite would be ham and egg. What’s yours?

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Actually just plain egg is pretty awesome too. Heh :)

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Now, imagine a cake sandwich, with delicious buttercream filling inside and super shiny royal icing on top, covered in rainbow sprinkles.

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That’s a whoopie pie! :)

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Here’s one.

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This is the first time I’ve made these beauties, and I have the tell you- I love the texture. The two halves of the chocolate cake sandwich are fudgy, yet really moist. It happens because of the yogurt in the batter. The buttercream filling is, well, yummy. Altogether, it’s a pretty darn good sandwich.

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Here is a plateful. Don’t you want one? :)

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Chocolate Whoopie pies
Largely adapted from: Step by step Baking

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Prep time: 40 mins
Cook time: 12 mins
Makes: 10

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Ingredients:

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175 g unsalted butter, softened
150 g brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
225 g flour, sifted
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
75 g cocoa powder, sifted
150 ml milk
4 tbsp thick yogurt

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For the buttercream

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100 g unsalted butter
200 g icing sugar, sifted
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp milk (if needed)

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For the royal icing

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1 egg white
150 g icing sugar, sifted
few drops of lemon juice
sprinkles (optional)

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Method:

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For the pies

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1. Preheat the oven to 180º C. Line two baking sheets/trays with parchment. Whisk together the butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and mix well again.
2. In another bowl, mix the flour, salt, baking powder and cocoa. Spoon this dry mixture into the sugar-butter mix a little at a time, alternating with the milk until you use up all the dry mixture and all the milk. Now add the yogurt and mix it all together.
3. Spoon tablespoons of the mixture onto the lined baking trays, leaving space in between for them to spread. With another spoon dipped in warm water, smoothen the tops and try to get a roughly round-ish shape. Bake in the pre-heated oven for 12 minutes, remove and cool on a wire rack.

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For the buttercream

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In a bowl, mix together all the buttercream ingredients, except the milk. Whisk on high for about 3-5 minutes. If the mixture seems too thick add some milk to loosen it up a bit.

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For the royal icing

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Whisk the egg white with the sugar for about 5 minutes. Add the lemon juice and whisk on high for another two minutes. (This icing works really well on cupcakes too!)

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For the assembly

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Take the cooled whoopies and spread buttercream on the flat sides of half of them. Sandwich them with the other un-iced halves gently. You should be able to see some buttercream in the middle. Spoon some royal icing over each one, and spread gently with a spoon. Decorate if sprinkles if you like colour (like me!) :)

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Coconut cake with coconut cream frosting

Posted in desserts, tagged , , , on March 26, 2012 | 6 Comments »

Coconut. Most people either sing songs about its wonderful sweetness, or grumble if they taste it in anything except a Thai curry.

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I adore it. I have a feeling it’s due to my mixed Bong-Mallu (For the uninitiated that’s Bengali-Malyali) DNA.

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Coconut is one ingredient that serves you well in both sweet and savoury dishes.

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It’s wonderfully versatile.

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Coconut sprinkles make cupcakes prettier.

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Coconut oil makes banana chips taste heavenly.

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Coconut cream makes me weep with joy every time I sip a Pina Colada.

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Coconut milk is bliss in Malai Curry (Bengali prawn curry with coconut milk).

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Coconut bits in Kerala beef curry. Killer.

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I could go on. But here’s my little coconut celebration.

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Enjoy!

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Coconut cake with coconut cream frosting

Prep time: 30 mins
Cook time: 45 mins
Serves: 10

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Ingredients:

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125 g butter (salted is fine, but softened), plus a bit more for greasing
1 tsp coconut extract or flavour
200 g castor sugar
2 large eggs
50 g desiccated coconut, plus a bit more for sprinkling
175 g flour, sifted
2 tsp baking powder
250 g yogurt
100 ml milk
250 ml coconut cream tin (left in the fridge overnight)
5 tbsp icing sugar
1 drop violet food colour

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Method:

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For the cake

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1. Preheat the oven to 180º C and line a 20 cm round cake tin with baking parchment. Grease the whole tin with some melted butter.
2. In a large bowl mix the butter, coconut flavour and sugar together. Add the eggs one by one and gently beat together.
3. Now add the coconut, flour, baking powder, yogurt and milk and mix vigorously until you have a smooth batter.
4. Pour into the cake tin and bake for 45 minutes or until a knife comes out clean. Let it cool in the tin for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

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For the frosting

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1. Take the coconut cream out of the fridge and open the tin. Carefully scoop out only the cream from the top of the tin. Leave the water that’s at the bottom. (You could drink it later- it’s delicious!)
2. Put the cream into a mixing bowl and use a hand mixer to whisk for a few minutes. When it begins to get slightly thick, add the icing sugar and food colour. Whisk for a few minutes more and then put away in the fridge to keep cool.
3. Once the cake is cool, slice it in half horizontally and spread half the coconut frosting inside. Cover with the top half of the cake and spread the remaining frosting over. Sprinkle some desiccated coconut on top. Serve!

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A single girl’s guide to surviving Valentine’s Day

Posted in desserts, friends, holiday, tagged , , , , on February 13, 2012 | 12 Comments »

Don’t:

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1. Be grumpy and scowl at all your dating/married friends. (also don’t sarcastically ask them their plans for the day.)
2. Listen to the Glee version of We found love on repeat and get depressed. (Best proposal ever, or what?!)
3. Eat a whole bag of peanuts. Trust me on this one.
4. Watch a rom-com and get teary-eyed. (It’s been done to death! Why not try a horror movie?)
5. Pretend like you hate everything about this day. (seriously- not cool.)

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Do:

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1. Control your gag reflex everytime you see a furry, pink heart.
2. Log onto Pinterest and see something funny like this, something inspirational like this, or something amazing like this. (but try not to spend your WHOLE day there. It’s harder than you might think.)
3. Have a glass of wine with your girlfriends. (Or French fries. French fries are good.)
4. Remind yourself how amazing you are. (and how many people love you!)
5. Bake this cake. This dark chocolate cake. Eat a piece. Maybe two. (Heck, even a third! Who’s watching?)
And know that love will find you, if you want it to.

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Hugs to all my ladies! Happy Valentine’s Day :)

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Dark chocolate flourless cake
Recipe adapted from: Baking Bites

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Prep time: 20 mins
Cook time: 22 mins
Serves: 12

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Ingredients:

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125 g good-quality dark chocolate, broken into pieces

125 g butter (salted is fine), plus a little extra for greasing

150 g castor sugar

3 eggs

50 g cocoa powder

1 tsp vanilla powder

1 tsp coffee powder

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Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 190º C. Melt the chocolate and butter in a double-boiler, and mix until glossy and smooth.
2. Add the sugar and mix well. Crack in the eggs one at a time, and incorporate the first before cracking the next. Mix well.
3. Sift in the cocoa, vanilla, and coffee. Mix until everything is incorporated. Line an 8-inch square tin with baking parchment and grease slightly. Pour in the batter and bake in the preheated oven for 22 minutes. Remove and let it cool completely. It will be a bit wobbly when you take it out, but will harden as it cools. Eat plain or with vanilla ice-cream. Tastes even better the next day!

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