Red Velvet Cupcakes

I have always wanted to make red velvet cupcakes, but never came around to do it. This weekend however I made some for friends at work, and they came out cute and delicious (the cupcakes, not my friends...). I thought that they were very moist as well, which is always good. As you could have guessed, this wonderful recipe comes from my book Cupcakes (Collection Cuistot). I think next time I will add more cocoa powder to enhance the chocolate favour, but they were good nonetheless.

Ingredients for cupcakes:

80 g unsalted butter, RT

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1 cup flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 tablespoon cocoa powder

1/3 buttermilk*

1/2 teaspoon white vinegar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

red food coloring*

Ingredients for cream cheese frosting:

80 g cream cheese, RT

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup icing sugar

* If you do not have buttermilk, you can substitute it using the following recipe: for each cup of milk, add 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice. Let sit for 10 minutes prior to using.

* For the food coloring, you could use the liquid type, but I prefer to use the gel food coloring (e.g. Wilton has many colors) because only a small quantity is required for an intense color.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Place muffin liners in cupcake pan.

2. Lightly beat the egg, and add in the butter and sugar. Mix until mixture is light and fluffy.

3. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder. Whisk ingredients to combine.

4. Add this mixture to the butter preparation. Mix thoroughly.

5. Add the buttermilk, red food coloring, white vinegar and vanilla extract. Mix until preparation is creamy.

6. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full and bake for 10-15 minutes for miniature cupcakes. For large cupcakes, bake for 15-18 minutes.

7. For the frosting, beat together the cream cheese and vanilla extract until mixture is unctuous. Gradually add in the icing sugar. Wait until the cupcakes have cooled down completely, and spread the frosting on each cupcake. Enjoy!

Yield: 24 small cupcakes (or 8 large cupcakes)

Sausage and Peppers Soup

If there is one thing that I love about the cold weather of autumn and winter apart from baking, it is surely to make some delicious warm and hearty soups. This recipe comes from one of my favorite cookbooks thus far, Better Homes and Gardens - Comfort Food Family Dinners. What I just love about this soup beyond its simplicity to make is that, apart from the warmth provided by all soups, it also has some heat brought by the addition of cayenne pepper, which is perfect for chilly nights. It is the first soup I make that has potatoes in it, and I really loved the texture and taste that they provided. Excellent soup for all to try.

Ingredients:

3-4 Italian sausages

1 red pepper, chopped

1 yellow pepper, chopped

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

6 cups chicken broth

3 tomatoes, chopped

1 1/2 cups potatoes, diced

1 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions:

1. In a large pan, cook the sausages, peppers, onion and garlic in a bit of oil on medium heat for 5 minutes, or until sausages have almost completely cooked. Remove surplus oil.

2. Add the chicken broth, tomatoes, potatoes and basil. Bring to a boil.

3. Decrease the heat to medium-low and let simmer for 10-15 minutes, until potatoes are tender.

4. Add the cayenne pepper and enjoy!

Mocha Cake

For my mom's and dad's birthdays, I decided that I would make them both a combined cake. Since my mom generally doesn't like homemade goods (weird, no?!), I tried to go for something simple: a mocha cake. To my great surprise, she really liked the cake. Or so she said. Either way, I really like this cake recipe, from 100 vedettes, 100 recettes - Centraide, because of its deliciousness combined with simplicity.

Ingredients for cake:

3/4 cup unsalted butter, RT

1 2/3 cups sugar

4 eggs

4 squares unsweetened chocolate, melted*

2 1/3 cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

walnuts, chopped (optional)

Ingredients for frosting:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, RT

5 cups icing sugar

4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

6 tablespoons prepared coffee

pinch of salt

* To melt the chocolate, it is easy to do so by chopping coarsely and heating in the microwave for 30-second intervals, mixing the chocolate between each. A double-boiler could also be used.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter two round 9-inch pans.

2. Cream together the butter and sugar until mixture is light and fluffy.

3. Add the eggs, ensuring to mix well after each addition.

4. Pour the melted chocolate in the butter mixture and blend well until a homogenous mixture is obtained.

5. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Add to the chocolate butter mixture, alternating with the addition of milk.

6. Add the vanilla extract.

7. Divide the cake mixture equally in the two round pans and bake for approximately 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

8. For the frosting, cream the butter, and add the icing sugar and cocoa powder. Mix well. Incorporate the liquid coffee and salt.

9. When the two layers of the cake have cooled down, spread a layer of icing on top of the bottom layer, and carefully place the other layer of cake on top of the frosting. Proceed to spreading frosting on the top of the cake as well as on the sides. Garnish with walnuts if desired.

Banana-Topped Vanilla Cupcakes

Since I enjoy baking so much, I once again made cupcakes for a lab meeting at work. This recipe comes from my new book Cupcakes (Collection Cuistot), and I found the cupcakes so cute that I had to try it. I really liked the taste of these simple yet adorable cupcakes!

Ingredients for cupcakes:

80 g unsalted butter, at room temperature (RT)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Ingredients for frosting:

80 g unsalted butter, RT

1 cup icing sugar

2 bananas, sliced

Chocolate, grated

Yellow food coloring

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Place muffin liners in miniature cupcake pan.

2. Beat together the butter and brown sugar until mixture is homogenous and fluffy.

3. Add the egg and combine well.

4. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.

5. Add the flour mixture, milk and vanilla extract to the butter mixture. Mix thoroughly.

6. Fill the 24 muffin cups and bake for 10-15 minutes, until cupcakes are firm to the touch. Let cupcakes cool down before frosting.

8. To make the frosting, beat together the butter and food coloring. Gradually add in the icing sugar until desired consistency is reached.

9. Spread frosting on cupcakes and top with a slice of banana sprinkled with grated chocolate.

Yield: 24 small cupcakes

Triple Chocolate Cookies

A couple of days ago my friend Émilie posted a recipe on her blog for succulent triple chocolate cookies. They looked delicious so of course, being a chocolate fan and loving to bake, I had no choice but to try it. Hence I did and, like my friend said, they did in fact taste like heaven!! So chocolaty, so tasty, miam. I am definitely keeping this recipe in my favorites. Go visit her blog, it's full of great recipes!

N.B. I forgot to add the brown sugar when I did these, but they still tasted very good. The recipe is better with the latter, but if you don't have any you can still try out this recipe.

Ingredients:

150 g flour

50 g unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 pinch salt

115 g butter, unsalted

100 g sugar

100 g brown sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

100 g white chocolate chips

100 g semi-sweet dark chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300°F.

2. Beat together the butter, sugar and brown sugar until mixture is homogenous and fluffy.

3. Add the egg and vanilla extract.

4. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

5. Combine the flour mixture with the butter mixture. Be patient, the dough will be very thick.

6. Add the chocolate chips and mix well.

7. Place a teaspoon of the dough on a baking sheet for each cookie. Bake for 12-14 minutes.

8. Enjoy!

Yield: about 30 cookies (plenty to share! or not... :p )

Melted Marshmallow Cupcakes

Last weekend I was unable to resist and bought a cupcake recipe book! The book is Cupcakes (Collection Cuistot) and contains recipes for more than 70 delicious-looking cupcakes. As such, I could not wait to try a recipe with my new cookbook and my new KitchenAid hand-mixer (a birthday gift from my dad!). I chose a recipe for marshmallow cupcakes because it sounded delicious. Although my coworkers generally found them to be a bit too sweet, they seemed to like them nonetheless. Beware though, this recipe is very messy while cooking! The marshmallows ooze out of the muffin liners. Do not stop this from trying the recipe though, I don't think you will regret it.

N.B. I am currently trying out the method of weighing ingredients for better accuracy and consistency between each batch. So far it's seems to work out.

Ingredients for cupcakes:

2 eggs

125 g butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup buttermilk*

2 cups self-rising flour*

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

100 g mini-marshmallows

Ingredients for frosting:

1 1/2 cups icing sugar

125 g butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

100 g mini-marshmallows, melted*

* If you do not have buttermilk, you can substitute it using the following recipe: for each cup of milk, add 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice. Let sit for 10 minutes prior to using.

* If you do not have self-rising flour, you can follow the following recipe for a substitute: for each cup of flour, add 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

* To melt the marshmallows, heat in the microwave in 20-second intervals, mixing well between each.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Place the muffin cups in the pan.

2. In a bowl, lightly beat the eggs.

3. Add the butter and sugar. Mix until the mixture is light and smooth.

4. Add the buttermilk, flour and vanilla extract. Mix well for at least 2 minutes.

5. Add the marshmallows to the mixture and combine well.

6. Fill the muffin cups and bake for 18-20 minutes. WARNING: extremely messy. Wait until the cupcakes are entirely cooled before frosting.

7. For the frosting, combine the butter, icing sugar and vanilla extract. Add the melted marshmallows and mix until frosting is fluffy. You may add coloring gel at this point.

Enjoy!!

Yield: 12-14 cupcakes

Classic Carrot Muffins

This recipe is pretty basic, but carrot muffins are one of my favorite things to eat (ever!), so I just had to add a recipe for it. I obtained the recipe from my desert cookbook Irrésistibles Biscuits!. This one is simple and ensures that the resulting muffins will be moist and tasty!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup sugar

2/3 cup liquid honey

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3 eggs

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 tablespoon baking powder

2 cups carrots, shredded (∼ about 3 large carrots)

1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Place the muffin cups in the pan.

2. In a bowl, combine the sugar, honey and vegetable oil. Mix well.

3. Add the eggs, mixing after each addition.

4. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda and baking powder. Whisk together the ingredients and add them to the honey mixture.

5. Incorporate the carrots and walnuts.

6. Fill each muffin cup to 3/4 full and bake for 15 minutes. Enjoy!

Yield: 18-20

Oat and Fruits Energy Bars

Since I moved out of my parents house, I have been learning (and loving!) to cook on my own. As such, since about two months ago I have vowed to try a new recipe at least once every weekend. This week I tried to make healthy energy bars, and they came out great! I am not a huge fan of apricots or cranberries, but somehow I still love these bars; they are tasty and energizing. I obtained the recipe from my dad's cookbook: "150 Recettes Simples Comme Bonjour", by Coup de Pouce.

Ingredients:

2/3 cup butter, room temperature

1 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cup oatmeal

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped

1/2 cup almonds, sliced

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup sweet flaked coconut

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 9x13 inch pan.

2. In a bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar until the mixture is inflated.

3. Add the egg and the vanilla extract. Blend well with a mixer.

4. In a separate bowl, combine the oatmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

5. To this dried mixture, add the dried apricots, almonds, dried cranberries and flaked coconut. Mix well.

6. Combine the dried mixture to the butter. Mix until all the ingredients are well combined.

7. Deposit the dough in the buttered pan and bake for 30 minutes, or until the top has a golden colour.

Yield: 12 bars

White Chocolate and Raspberry Squares

Two of my favorite dessert foods are chocolate and raspberries. As such, when I saw a recipe for squares that contained both, I just had to try it. This recipe was taken from the magazine Ricardo - Our 75 Best Summer Recipes. I've done this recipe twice now, and it came out perfect both times, with delicious and sweet chocolate-raspberry squares, so go ahead and give it a try!

Ingredients:

180 g (6 oz.) white chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 tablespoons milk

1 cup fresh raspberries

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter an 8x8 inch square cake pan.

2. In a double boiler , gently melt the chocolate, stirring constantly. If using the microwave, heat the chocolate for 30 second intervals until completely melted, stirring between each. Set aside.

3. In a bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder. Whisk together.

4. In a separate bowl, beat the sugar and the eggs with a mixer until the mixture is thick and pale.

5. While beating, add the melted chocolate and vanilla extract.

6. Stir in the dry ingredients to this mixture, alternating with the milk.

7. Gently fold in the raspberries.

8. Pour into the pan and bake for 40 minutes.

Yield: 6-8 servings.

Delicious Blueberry Muffins

If there is one thing that I love when it comes to eating comfort food, it is blueberry muffins. They are simply delicious and invigorating to eat. As such, I decided to make some myself, from a recipe I obtained from All Recipes.com. The resulting muffins were large and scrumptious. Follow this simple recipe and you are assured to end up with a batch of to-die-for blueberry muffins:

Ingredients for muffins:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup white sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 egg

1/3 cup milk

1 cup fresh blueberries

Ingredients for topping:

1/2 cup white sugar

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup butter, cubed and at RT

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Line the pan with muffin liners.

2. Sift together the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Mix well.

3. Add the vegetable oil, egg and milk to the flour mixture.

4. Gently fold in the blueberries. Fill the muffin cups to the top.

5. To prepare the crumb topping, combine the sugar, flour, butter and cinnamon. Sprinkle over the muffins.

6. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until crumb topping is golden.

Yield: 9 large muffins.