Posts filed under 'Truffle'
Mimosa Cupcake – soft, fluffy orange cupcakes with Mimosa truffle topping and decorated with candied orange zest. Price available upon request.
bring on the bubbly!
I love the taste of freshly squeezed orange juice. I also love sucking on orange wedges. However, I just found this article that says that habitually sucking on orange, lemon and grapefruit wedges will result to a loss of the front teeth enamel because of acid erosion. Yikes! Since, I don’t habitually suck on those juicy wedges, I guess my pearly whites are safe. 
2009 is nearly here and I was thinking of what cupcake to make to celebrate this momentous occasion. Champagne came to mind. What’s more appropriate to escort out the old year and usher in the new one than sipping some bubbly? I tried a recipe called New Year’s Eve Pink Champagne Cupcakes. I don’t know if I did something wrong—the description promised a light cupcake but mine turned out dense, almost pound cake-like. I am not of the dense cake camp so this cupcake did not appeal to me at all.
While Googling for information on champagne, some results showed Mimosa. Now what is a Mimosa? A Mimosa is a cocktail of freshly squeezed orange juice and champagne. The ratio of champagne to orange juice varies from recipe to recipe, sometimes depending on personal tastes. Some call for two parts champagne to one part orange juice or vice versa or equal parts of champagne and orange juice.
So why not a Mimosa cupcake? The Cupcake Project has a recipe that I think has been making the rounds of cupcake blogs everywhere—I’m sure it tastes great. However, I concocted my own. I adapted one of my recipes into an orange-flavored one. I contemplated on adding orange extract but in the end, I just added lots of orange zest which is really a powerhouse of a flavoring besides being more natural than the commercial extract.
The cupcake tasted heavenly—it was fluffy and tender— and the citrusy aroma just permeates the air. The children in our house liked them so much that nothing was left for me to frost so I had to bake another batch. The Mimosa truffle topping I made has a subtle hint of champagne—it does not stand out but one can definitely taste it.
For the final touch, I chose candied orange zest. The recipe I followed stressed that “if any pith remains on the peel, scrape it away” so scrape away I did. The resulting candy was a joy and it delivers a happy burst of sunshine to the taste buds. I was quite proud of this feat as I never imagined myself making candied zest.
I would add this cupcake to my list of favorites. To me, oranges bring happiness and champagne evokes celebration and that’s what this cupcake reminds me of.
Candied Orange Zest from The Cake Bible
3 oranges, thick skinned
1 c sugar
1 c water
1 tbsp corn syrup
Peel the oranges with a sharp knife; avoid any white part of the peel when doing so. Cut the peel into julienne strips. Place in a heavy saucepan of boiling water, reduce to simmer and cook for 15 minutes. Drain; rinse with cold water. Place in the same pot as it was cooked in and add in the sugar, water and corn syrup. Bring to boil stirring constantly, then stop stirring. Add in the zest and cover with a tight fitting lid. Reduce to simmer and cook over low heat for 15 minutes without disturbing. Remove from heat and allow to cool in pan covered. Refrigerate the candy in syrup in airtight container. Store up to a month.
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a champagne by any other name . . .
Nowadays, a true champagne is one that is produced in the Champagne region of France. All others that employ the same method of fermentation are called sparkling wines. Sparkling wines produced in various parts of the world have their own designations: Spain, cava; Italy, spumante; (Italian sparkling wines made with muscat grape is called DOCG Asti); South Africa, cap classique; Germany, sekt.
December 31st, 2008
Chocolate Oblivion Truffle Cake - melt-in-the-mouth chocolate truffle cake. Flourless and with no added sugar. Decorated with chocolate leaves and roses made of pliable candy. Price available upon request.
died and went to heaven
My teenaged goddaughter K._, one of my “tasters”, told me recently she wanted a break from cupcakes and requested for a cake. Not just any cake, she insisted that I bake for her a chocolate cake.
And so I made this truffle cake adapted from The Cake Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum. This has only three essential ingredients—good quality dark chocolate, eggs and unsalted butter. Total baking time is a mere 15 minutes. I was a bit worried that the cake might not turn firm enough after baking but the recipe said that the cake will indeed appear soft and assured that this is how it should be. After three hours in the refrigerator, it indeed became firm.
I decided against covering the cake with chocolate ganache and instead played up its simplicity by encasing it with chocolate leaves (I used rose leaves plucked from our garden) and decorating with roses made with pliable candy. The candy is the only sugary stuff in the cake and you can choose to go all out sugar-free by not eating it. (This decoration was also inspired by the Beranbaum book, only I made slight changes).
After the photo was taken, the family had slices and they all gushed about its taste and texture. “Death by chocolate,” “died and went to heaven,” “melt-in-the-mouth,” “I want this for my wedding(!)” and simply “mmmmmm” filled my ears which really pleased me. It was like a mousse and truffle, airy, soft but not runny. I just made half the recipe because I wanted to test how the chocolate bars I got would fare. The family is not too fond of intensely bittersweet chocolate so I used dark chocolate that is marked with 45% cocoa solids.
As it is, the cake is just pure heaven. I might experiment with chocolates with higher percentage of cocoa solids next time. I used to bake a recipe similar to this only with a slight difference in ingredient proportions and procedure. My friend L._ who ordered it said her children loved it but after trying these two, I am sticking with the Beranbaum recipe
By the way, here’s a shout out to Ms. Beranbaum and The Cake Bible, which is celebrating its 20th birthday this year (the book was published October 19, 1988) and still continues to be an inspiration to all bakers and lovers of good food. I learned a lot of techniques in this book and it is very enjoyable to read, too (I found myself laughing out loud on some instances, really). I also took Ms. Beranbaum’s cue and vowed that all cakes (and cupcakes) I make should taste as divine as they look. To quote from the book: “Cakes made for special occasions must dazzle the eye. But no matter how carried away I get with decorating, my chief concerns are always flavor and texture. If a cake isn’t going to taste absolutely delicious, there is no point in making it!” How true!
November 16th, 2008
Blackgold Truffle Cupcake – silken, decadently-rich flourless truffle cupcake, topped with whipped white chocolate ganache flecked with edible gold luster dust. Price available upon request.
chocolate rush
I have this recipe for a flourless chocolate truffle cake and once again, I converted it into miniature cakes. If you are a true-blue chocoholic, this cupcake is for you. I bake this differently and that accounts for the silky texture through and through. I have tried countless recipes of flourless truffle cake and this is the best of the lot. It has a deep chocolate flavor and is not too sweet although it is indeed rich. But then chocolate IS supposed to be rich. No sugar-free chocolates for me!
The cupcake is decadent enough so I just topped it with a whipped white chocolate ganache that is also not cloyingly sweet. And to highlight its richness, there is nothing more appropriate than flecks of edible gold luster dust.
October 6th, 2008
Sweetheart Cupcake – cupcake with swirls of seedless raspberry preserves, frosted with raspberry whipped cream and topped with hand-molded heart chocolate candy filled with raspberry truffle. Price available upon request.
I Heart Berries!
Berries are reported to be very beneficial to the health as they contain large amounts of anti-oxidants that help flush out toxins from the body. Since most berries are not grown in the Philippines, we just have to contend with their processed forms such as jams and preserves, yogurts or ice cream to get our berry fix. Still, nothing beats fresh, though. While strawberries are abundant in Baguio, they are also seasonal and thus, are not regular fixtures in the produce section of supermarkets. Some upscale supermarkets, however, such as Rustan’s and S&R, sell imported fresh blueberries, strawberries, blackberries and raspberries. Big bags of frozen berries are also available so those who are into smoothies might want to check out these stores.
While making this cupcake, I was undecided on what frosting to use. I initially topped it with ganache because raspberries and chocolate share a wonderful affinity. But I also wanted to put a raspberry truffle candy on top so I thought maybe ribbons of raspberry whipped cream might be better. After a taste test, my friend K._ raved about the whipped cream so that sealed the deal.
As for the piece de resistance, the heart-shaped chocolate candy filled with raspberry truffle is entirely hand made. The raspberry flavor is not too assertive but you can definitely taste it.
August 13th, 2008
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