Cupcake birthday cake

It was close to my youngest 4th birthday when I realised I have no idea what cake to bake. Asking the birthday girl was pointless as her imagination is greater then my decoration skills. I was looking for something tasty, easy to make and easy to serve. Attending to different parties I have seen too often beautiful birthday cakes not eaten, parents struggling to cut the cake... ah not this year. This year I have decided to bake my children's favourite chocolate cupcakes, arrange them into a cake and decorate them with frosting. When I asked my little one about sun cake she was delighted. I am aware of the fact that this cake doesn't look professional but it was home baked, tasty, took seconds to serve and what is more important most of it was eaten.

     

Ingredients for 20 cup cakes:

• 250g margarine for baking
• 4 tbsp milk
• 4 tbsp baking cocoa
• 1 1/2 mug* of sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 mug* of flour
• 2 tbsp baking powder
• 16 g vanilla sugar

 *take regular coffee mug

Preheat the oven to 200C. Line a muffin tin with paper cases.

In a sauce pan put the margarine, milk, sugar, cocoa powder and bring it to boil stirring all the time. When it is boiled let the mixture to cool down. After some time, when the mixture is room temperature, add the flour, baking powder, vanilla sugar and egg yolks. Give it a good stir. In separate bowl whisk egg whites until stiff (add pinch of salt). Gently fold the egg white foam into the batter. Spoon the batter in paper cases 3/4 full. Bake for 15-20 min. Check with toothpick if baked in the middle.  

Transfer baked cupcakes to the wire rack to cool them down completely. While cooling down prepare the frosting.

 Frosting:

• 300g Philadelphia cream cheese
• 250g soft butter
• 2 cups icing sugar
• food colourings

 Put the soft butter into an electric mixer bowl and whisk until smooth. While whisking add icing sugar. When the sugar is well incorporated start adding cream cheese. When all cream cheese is added increase the speed and whisk until smooth and fluffy.

Divide the frosting among bowls and stir in the food colourings to get desire colours. Chill in the fridge for about an hour.

Arrange the cooled cupcakes on a tray. Transfer the frosting into piping bags. Use the yellow frosting to create the Sun, fill the gaps with blue frosting and with black and red create the face. 

 

 Enjoy !

Recipe in Polish

Mini cheesecakes with fruit jelly

Today's recipe : cheesecake topped with some fruits and jelly. Sound yummy ? I promise it was yummy. It is not difficult to prepare this dessert but it's a bit time consuming.  Anyway it's worth it !

Ingredients for 7 XL size cheesecakes:

cheesecake layer:

• 450g cream cheese
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 110g sugar

bottom layer:

• 200g digestives biscuits
• 95g butter

 jelly:

• 1 packet of jelly
• tinned fruits

 Put the cream cheese, egg, vanilla and sugar in a blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 200C. Line muffin tin with paper cases.

Melt the butter and set aside to cool it down. Place the biscuits in a bag and smash them with rolling pin until reassemble fine crumbs. Mix with melted butter.  

Spoon this mixture on the bottom of beach paper case, so the bottom is evenly covered. Press the crumbs to the bottom with back of the spoon. 

Then spoon thick layer of cream cheese mixture on top. 

Place the muffin tin in preheated oven for  20 minutes. When ready remove form the oven and set aside to cool down. You may remove each cheesecake form muffin tin as this will speed up the cooling down process.

In a meantime prepare the jelly. Dissolve packed of jelly in a hot water. To speed up the setting process reduce  recommended amount of water by 100ml. Set aside to cool down.

When cheesecakes are cooled down put them back into muffin tin. Place some fruits on top of each cheesecake, then pour in the jelly. Put the tin to the fridge and keep the cheesecakes there until the jelly sets.

You may serve them with whipping cream.

Enjoy !

Recipe in Polish

Chocolate and Amaretto mini cheesecakes (no bake)

Today I would like to present this divine chocolate cheesecakes. They are made of amaretti cookies, cream cheese, mascarpone and chocolate with a hint of Amaretto. I made them in a circular shape in silicone XL size muffin tin but still it was tricky to take them out.  I would recommend to use paper cases or make this cheesecake in a big spring form tin. Anyway I finally have mine out, decorated them in Easter style and enjoyed them a lot.

My inspiration comes form here.

Ingredients for bottom layer:

• 200g amaretii cookies
• 50 - 70g* melted butter
• 100g lady fingers biscuits

* I was concerned about amount of fat in this recipe. I didn't want to add a lot of butter to the bottom layer. I have added only 50g of butter but then realised that bottom layer was too crumbly. I would recommend to add more butter so the crumbs mixed with butter would be more moist. 

Melt the butter. Place the biscuits in the blender and blend them until resemble sand. Stir in the butter, press with your finger to check if crumbs stick together.

Divide the mixture among muffin tin cups. Press to the bottom with back of the spoon.

Set aside to the fridge to chill. Prepare the cheesecake layer.

Ingredients for cheesecake layer:

• 250g Mascarpone cheese
• 100g Philadelphia cream cheese
• 200g dark chocolate
• 25 ml Amaretto

Place the Mascaropne and Philadelphia cheeses in a blender, add the Amaretto and whisk until smooth. 

Melt down the chocolate either over the pot with simmering water or in microwave. Pour the melted chocolate into the blender. Whisk again until smooth and evenly chocolaty.

Spoon the cheesecake layer on top of the crumb layer. Put the tin into a fridge and chill for at lest 2 hours. Mine were in the fridge overnight. After that time remove form the tin and decorate with some almond sticks and chocolate eggs. 

 

  Enjoy !

Recipe in Polish

Dried cherry cheesecake muffins

I've recently bought dried cherries. They are not so often available in here. At first I didn't have a clue how use them. They were so tasty. Luckily I came across interesting recipe in a 'Easy muffins' cook book. They were called cheesecake muffins ... . As a result we had spongy, not too moist, sweet, really tasty muffins packed with dried cherries. We enjoyed them very much. I truly recommend them.    

 Ingredients for 12 - 14 standard size muffins or 24 - 28 small ones:

• 200g cream cheese (I used Philadelphia)
• 150g caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• 150g butter
• 300g self - rising flour
• 100g dried cherries

Preheat the oven to 180C. Line muffin tin with paper cases. 

Melt the butter and set aside to cool down.

Chop the cherries and mix them with flour, set aside.

In a big bowl mix the sugar and cream cheese. Then add the eggs one at a time. Pour in the melted and cooled butter. Add the flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Mix all ingredients together until just combined.

Spoon the batter into paper cases, about 3/4 full. Bake about 20 minutes until the muffins are golden on the top. 

Enjoy !

Polish recipe 

Chocolate mini cheesecaces

I like all types of cheesecakes. I have already bake a few mini versions of different flavors cheesecakes. Already you can find on my blog :

- plain mini cheesecakes with jam

- coconut mini cheesecakes

- marzipan mini cheesecakes

- lemon mini cheesecakes .

This time I have decided to try chocolate cheesecake baked in small, made of bourbon biscuits, bowls. And they were divine ! Crunchy, chocolaty shells filled with creamy, velvety, chocolaty cheesecake. I think they worth to try. 

Ingredients for 12 mini cheesecakes - shells/bowls:

• 400g Bourbon biscuits
• 90g butter

Preheat the oven to 200C.

Melt the butter and set aside to cool it down. Place the biscuits in the blender and blend them until remains fine crumbs. Pour the butter into crumbs and mix until all crumbs are evenly coated.

Divide this mixture among all muffin tin cups (about two heaped tablespoons of crumbs into each cup). Press with you fingers or with back of the spoon until cover the bottom and edges of each cup. If you like you can first line muffin tin with paper cases. It will definitely help you remove ready baked cheesecakes form the tin but it is not necessary.  

Insert muffin tin into the oven and bake the shells for about 10 minutes. Then remove form the oven and set aside to cool down a bit.

In a meantime prepare the cheesecake filling.

Ingredients for the filling:

• 600g cream cheese
• 2 eggs
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 2 tbsp vanilla sugar
• 6 tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp semolina

Place all the ingredients in a blender and  blend until smooth. Divide the cream cheese mixture among baked shells. Remaining cream cheese filling lace in a ramekin and bake placing beside muffin tin. 

Bake the mini cheesecakes for about 20 minutes until the cream cheese won't be wobbly. 

Remove form the oven and set aside to cool down. The insert into a fridge to cool them down completely. When cooled remove form the tin. For those who used paper cases it is easy but those who didn't have to use a knife. With a knife gently cut around each cheesecake and try to lift it from the bottom. Cheesecakes should easily 'jump out'. Before served should be kept in the fridge.  To decorate them you may sprinkle with chocolate sprinkles.

 Enjoy !

Muffins with plums and bacon

Today I would like to present a savoury plums and bacon muffins. This recipe comes from Carol Pastor '75 best - ever muffins' cookbook and originally is called devils on horseback. Why ? Because their main ingredient is the popular starter, fresh dates wrapped in bacon and fried. As I couldn't get fresh dates anywhere I replaced them with fresh plums. 

The muffins were very moist and dense with sweet and salty flavour. They were packed with sweet juicy bits of plum, crisp chunks of bacon and plenty herbs. 

Ingredients for 8 muffins:

• 225g flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp caster sugar
• 12 slices of bacon
• 24 wedges of plums
• 2 tbsp olive oil for frying
• 1 tbsp butter for frying
• 2 tsp oregano + some for decoration
• 115g soft herb and garlic cream cheese
• 175ml milk
• 75g butter melted
• 2 eggs
• ground black pepper

Cut the slices of bacon in half the get 24 slices. Wrap each plum wedge into a bacon. You can use a toothpick to hold them together.

In a frying pan heat the oil and butter over a medium heat. Add the bacon rolls and saute them turning them in the juices until they are crisp, about 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool down.

Sift the flour, baking powder, oregano and sugar into a bowl.

Preheat the oven to 180C. Line muffin tin with paper cases.

Melt the butter and set aside to cool down.

When the content of the frying pan is cool enough to handle, slice each of the bacon-wrapped plums into small discs. Return them to the frying pan. 

In a separate bowl beta in the cream cheese into a milk, with the butter and eggs. Pour into a dry ingredients and stir until part blended. Scrape the bacon and plum slices with any of the cooking juices into the batter and stir until evenly combined. Do not over mix.

Divide the batter between the paper cases and sprinkle with oregano. Bake for 25 minutes until well risen.

Enjoy !

Lemon mini cheesecakes for St. Patrick's day

Happy St. Patrick's Day !

Ingredients for 6 cheesecakes bases:

• 70g butter cookies
• 20g melted butter or margarine

Prepare muffin tin. Line 6 muffin holes with paper cases.

Put cookies into a blender and blend them until crumbly. Melt the butter, you can use microwave or melt the butter in  a saucepan on the cooker.  Pour the melted butter into a crumbs and bled again so crumbs are coated evenly with butter.

Divide the mixture evenly among all muffin cases. Flatten the crumbs with a back of the spoon. Set aside.

Ingredients for cheese mixture:

• 200g  cream cheese
• 1 small lemon
• 20g soft butter or margarine
• 1 tbsp semolina
• 6 tbsp icing sugar
• 1 egg
• green food colouring
• heart shaped chocolates for decoration

Preheat the oven to 180C.

Great the lemon zest and squeeze lemon juice. Place the into a blender. Add the cream cheese, butter, semolina, sugar, egg and green food colouring and blend until smooth. The mixture is a little bit runny.

Pour the mixture over prepared earlier muffin cases dividing evenly.

Bake for 25-30 minutes. When baked remove for oven and leave in muffin tin to cool down. Transfer to the plate and decorate with chocolate hearts.

 

Enjoy !

Chocolate raspberry cheesecake brownies

The classic brownie muffins appeared on my blog some time ago. But this time I wanted to test combination of cream cheese, rich chocolate cake and sour raspberries. It was lovely. Muffins were moist, very chocolaty, sweet with beautiful raspberry aroma. The recipe comes form 'Avoca Teat Time' cookbook. 

Ingredients for 12 muffins*:

• 100g chocolate
• 100g butter
• 125gsugar
• 2 eggs
• 55g flour

When double the ingredients you can bake the cake in 22x22x8 cm tin.

Preheat the oven to 180c. Line muffin tin with paper cases. Make sure that your muffin cases are greaseproof and thick as those muffins are slightly greasy.

Melt the chocolate in microwave or on a bowl placed over hot water pot. Set aside to cool down.

Put the butter and sugar into an electric mixer bowl and whisk until pale and fluffy. Gradually add the eggs. When the eggs are well incorporated add the melted chocolate and flour. Beat until smooth.

Spoon the batter into prepared muffin cases. Divide evenly among all muffin cases. Set the muffin tin aside.

Cream cheese layer*:

• 200g cream cheese
• 75g sugar
• 1 egg (I used 1 egg white)
• vanilla
• 60g raspberries (I used 100g of frozen ones)

 *if baking in 22x22x8 cm tin double the ingredients

Put the cream cheese, sugar, egg and vanilla in an electric mixer bowl and whisk until smooth.

Spoon the cream cheese into each muffin case on top of chocolate cake. Sprinkle with the raspberries.

Bake 25 - 30 minuets. Then remove form the oven, leave them in muffin tin for a few minutes then transfer to the plate. Enjoy warm or wait until cooled down. 

 

Marzipan mini cheesecakes

I am very proud of this recipe I created. Very creamy marzipan flavoured cheesecakes baked on the digestives biscuits crumbs mixed with nutella. My family got crazy about them, they really loved them. Those cheesecakes are also very easy to make. 

From the amount of ingredients listed below I received 18 cheesecakes. As you can see there is plenty to share.

Before start preheat the oven to 180C.

Ingredients for base:

• 168g digestives biscuits
• 90g nutella

 Place nutella and biscuits in the blender and whisk until the crumbly mixture is evenly coated with nutella.

Line muffin tin with paper cases and divide this crumbly mixture evenly among all of them. Smooth the surface with the back of the spoon. Set aside.

Ingredients for cheesecake:

•  750g cream cheese
• 175g marzipan + 100g for decoration
• 50g icing sugar
• 3 tbsp potato flour
• 1 tsp almond essence
• 3 eggs

Grate the marzipan and put it into an electric mixer bowl. Add the cream cheese, sugar, flour, almond essence and eggs. Beat this mixture very short, only to let all ingredients combine.

Spoon this mixture on top of prepared earlier bases. Fill each paper case up to top, leave 1-2 milimiters free space so when baked and dusted with coca powder the cocoa powder will stay in its place. 

Bake for 20 minutes. Then remove form the oven leave in the baking tin for a few minutes. Later transfer to the tray and put into fridge to cool them down completely.

In a meantime roll the remaining  marzipan and cut nice shapes for decoration.

When cheesecakes are cooled down dust the with cocoa powder or icing sugar and place marzipan decorations on top of each cheesecakes. Enjoy !

Coconut mini cheesecakes

The idea for coconut mini cheesecakes came form coconut cappuccino muffins. The cream cheese filling was so tasty that I decided to bake it separately as small cheesecakes with of course coconut streusel on top. As it was an experiment I baked only 5 of them. They were divine :) 

Ingredients for 5 mini cheesecakes coconut streusel:

• 30g flour
• 40g sugar
• 20g dessicated coconut
• 2 tbsp melted butter

Melt the butter. Put all dry ingredients into a small bowl and whisk them. Then stir in the melted butter. Set the mixture aside.

Preheat the oven to 180C. Line muffin tins with paper cases. I used slightly bigger ones so it was easy to remove baked cheesecakes form them to serve. 

Prepare the cream cheese layer.

Ingredients for cream cheese:

• 100g cream cheese
• 50g mascarpone
• 70g sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Put all ingredients into an electric mixer bowl and beat them until just combined. Set aside.

And now is the time to prepare the last layer. The cheesecakes bottoms.

Ingredients for cheesecakes bottoms:

• 73g digestives cookies (6 cookies)
• 20g margarine

Place the cookies and margarine into a blender and whisk them until well combined.

Take prepared earlier muffin tin lined with paper cases and place it font of you. Spoon the digestive cookies mixture on the bottom of each paper case. Press the crumbs with a back of the spoon. Divide evenly among all paper cases. Then put a layer of cheese mixture again divide evenly among all paper cases. Then sprinkle with coconut streausel.

Bake for 25 minutes. After baking time remove form the oven and leave in baking tin to cool down. Serve when completely cooled. You can keep them in the fridge to cool down. 

Enjoy ! 

 

Coconut cappucino muffins

When I found this recipe on Sprinkle Bakes blog I had to try to bake those muffins. I just thought they must have been delicious and believe me they were.  Coffee cake with chocolate chips, filled with creamy cheese and sprinkled with coconut streusel... what else to add. And they are not difficult to make, although I modified the recipe slightly.

 

First step to prepare those muffins would be coconut streusel.

Ingredients for coconut streusel:

• 60g flour
• 80g sugar
• 40g desiccated coconut
• 2 tbsp melted butter

Place dry ingredients into a medium size bowl and combine them. Put the 125g butter ( you will need it later for muffin batter) into a sauce pan or a bowl and melt the butter on a heat or in microwave. Pour two tablespoons of melted butter into dry ingredients, set aside the remaining butter. Whisk all ingredients together and set aside.

Ingredients for 12-18 muffin:

• 280g flour
• 150g sugar
• 2 and 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 250 ml milk
• 2 tbsp instant coffee
• 125g melted butter
• 1 egg
• 100g chocolate chips

 In a big bowl whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. 

Pour the milk into measuring jug add instant coffee and whisk until dissolves then add the egg and whisk well. 

Pour the wet ingredients to the bowl with dry ones, add melted butter and whisk until just combined. At last, but not at least, gently fold in the chocolate chips. 

Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 180C. Line muffin tin with paper cases.

Prepare the cheese filling.

Ingredients for cheese filling:

• 200g cream cheese
• 100g mascarpone
• 140g sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Place the cream cheese, mascarpone  and sugar  into an electric mixer bowl and beat well. Then add the egg and vanilla extract and beat until smooth and creamy.

Put in front of you prepared earlier muffin tin with paper cases, the muffin batter, the cream cheese filling and the coconut streusel. Put one table spoon of batter into each paper case, then put one heaped teaspoon of cream cheese filling and cover with muffin batter. Don not over load the muffin cases, 3/4 full is enough as the batter while baked rises and spreads on the sides. When all the muffin cases are full sprinkle the batter with coconut streusell. Bake for 20-25 minutes. When well risen and golden remove from the oven, leave for a few minutes into baking tin then transfer to the wire rack to cool down. Enjoy !

Coffee and pecan muffins

Those muffins were soft but not fluffy, with gentle coffee flavor and crunchy, sweet pecans hidden inside. Decorated with delicious coffee cream on the top and another crunchy nut.  I think they belong to top ten favourite muffins/cupcake on this blog. What make those muffins especially delicious are the nuts which are dipped in toffee before added to the batter. 

The recipe comes from 'The Australian Women's Weekly. Muffins".

To make those muffins start with toffee nuts.

Ingredients for toffee nuts:

• 125g pecans
• 115g caster sugar
• 60 ml water  

Reserve 12 whole nuts. Chop remaining nuts finely.

Prepare silicone mat. Set aside.

Put the sugar and water into a saucepan. Stir the ingredients over a heat without boiling until sugar dissolves. Then simmer uncovered, without stirring, until toffee is golden brown (about 10 minutes). Dip whole nuts into a hot toffee and place them one by one on silicone mat. Then stir in the chopped nuts into a toffee, spread the mixture over the silicone mat. When set reserve the whole nuts and chop the remaining ones finely. Set aside.

Ingredients for 12 muffins:

• 215g caster sugar
• 375g flour
• 1 tsp soda
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 90g butter
• 310ml buttermilk
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp instant coffee

Preheat the oven to 200C. Line muffin tin with paper cases.

Sift the flour, soda, baking powder into a bog bowl. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles semolina. Stir in the sugar and chopped nuts.

In separate jug combine buttermilk, whisked egg and instant coffee. Pour the wet ingredients into a bowl with dry ones.  Stir until just combined.

Spoon the batter into baking cases about 3/4 full. Bake for 20 minutes. Then remove from the oven and transfer to the wire rack to cool down.

When muffins are in the oven it is time to prepare the coffee cream.

Ingredients for coffee cream:

• 185g cream cheese
• 55g caster sugar
• 1 tsp instant coffee
• 2 tsp boiling water 

Put instant coffee in a small cup pour over the boiling water.

Place the cheese and sugar in a bowl, with electric mixer beat them together until sugar dissolves. Then add the coffee and whisk until smooth. 

When muffins are completely dry spoon the coffee cream on top of each one then put one whole nut to decorate. Enjoy !