Chocolate Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

Thank you so much for the recipe and photo Ann!

Visit Ann's Blog

Ann's World

Cupcakes:

220g butter
150g sugar
150g brown sugar
4 eggs
230g dark chocolate
270g flour
1 teaspoon (baking soda)
150ml buttermilk
2 packs (total 16g) vanilla sugar

Frosting:

150g butter, smooth
100g brown sugar
100g cream cheese (Philadelphia), room temperature
100ml maple sirup
200g powdered sugar
2 muffin baking tins and 24 paper muffin cups

Directions:

Melt the chocolate with some cream. Cool down.
Stir the butter, both sugars and the vanilla sugar with your mixer
Add the eggs one after the other and mix it very well
Add the chocolate.
Add the flour mix and the buttermilk
Place the dough in the baking tins (fill for three-fourths.
Bake in oven for 25 min.

Frosting:

Mix the butter with the sugar well.
Add the cream cheese and maple syrup.
Add as much powdered sugar as you want - until the mix has the right consistency to daub the cupcakes with. Put the frosting in the refrigerator for 20 min.
Daub the cooled Cupcakes with the frosting.
Decorate the Cupcakes with some chocolate granules, colored granules, some chocolate cream, caramel cream, cocoa...or whatever you like and have in your kitchen.

Cheers!

Patricia

Almond and Chocolate Clusters

1/2 cup (about 3 ounces) toasted slivered almonds

24 individually wrapped caramel candies (about 6 ounces)

1 cup (about 6 ounces) bittersweet chocolate chips

4 to 6 tablespoons cream, room temperature, divided

1 cup (about 6 ounces) white chocolate chips

Special equipment: 2 mini muffin tins

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Lightly grease the mini-muffin tins with vegetable oil spray.

Place 1 teaspoon of slivered nuts in each of the muffin cups.

Unwrap the caramel candies, cut each candy into quarters and place 4 quarters (1 candy) in each of the muffin cups on top of the nuts in a single layer.

Bake in the oven until the caramel is just melted and beginning to spread, about 8 minutes.

Be careful not to over melt the caramel or it will bubble, burn, and become too hard.

Place the mini muffin tins in the refrigerator for 5 minutes to cool.

Remove the nut clusters from the tins and set aside.

Meanwhile, melt the bittersweet chocolate in a double boiler over low heat.

Wisk 2 to 3 tablespoons of cream into the chocolate to slightly thin the chocolate for coating the clusters.

Dip half of the nut clusters in the bittersweet chocolate and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.

Return the clusters to the refrigerator to harden, about 30 minutes.

Melt the white chocolate in a double boiler over low heat.

Wisk 2 to 3 tablespoons of cream into the chocolate to slightly thin the chocolate for coating the clusters.

Dip remaining half of the nut clusters in the white chocolate and place on the parchment paper-lined baking sheet with the other chocolate-covered clusters.

Return the clusters to the refrigerator to harden, about 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Patricia

Hello Chocolate Lovers....I'm Back!

Well I'm back blogging after a very long hiatus due to some health issues, and more recently busy with my jewelery business. I hope to be able to stay more current so that I can provide all of you that read my Blog all kinds of interesting goodies and items worth noting. Yes, all these months away from blogging has been a bit disheartening but hopefully things will pick up. I thank all of those who have still been reading my blog during my absence and look forward to having you all back again.
A very special Happy Fourth of July to all of my American Family and Friends and Readers. Actually the 4th happens also to be my Wedding Anniversary. This year on the 4th my husband and I will be married ten years. So hard to believe that I moved here to New Zealand from New York just ten years ago to marry my Kiwi fiancé It seems like just yesterday quite frankly.
I have been pretty busy just lately setting up my new web site for my jewelry business:


Irresistibly Ewe
At
Patricia's Beaded Treasures


I would love for you to stop by for a visit, although I do not have any jewelry uploaded as yet but hope to be ready to go within the next week or two weeks. All of my jewelry is hand-crafted personally. I will be offering beaded jewelry, beaded charms fobs, and beaded bookmarks. There will also be links for other items for offer such as Home Decor, Vintage Treasures, and Shabby-Chic. You may also have interest in auctions, and they will be available via my boutique as well. I will post to my blog to let you know when I am up and running, but feel free to have a peek at my web site itself.
Well...good to be back all.....and as always I welcome your feedback at any time. Have a good look around as there are lots of things to see and make you think on my all my blogs.


Cheers From Patricia

White Chocolate Latte

A special treat for that very special person in your life.......YOU! This is a recipe for White Chocloate Latte that you will adore, especially if you enjoy white chocolate. It only take a few minutes prep time and the taste is sensational. So grab your quilt and your favorite book, and get ready to sit in your comfy easy chair or on the sofa to enjoy your latte. Don't you just love the latte mug set in the above photo? Here is the recipe!

2 cups milk

1 cup half-and-half

2/3 cup white chocolate chips

2 tablespoons instant coffee granules or expresso

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

whipped cream

cinnamon sticks

In a saucepan, stir together the first 4 ingredients over low heat until white chocolate melts. Stir in vanilla and almond extracts; pour mixture into 4 mugs. Top with whipped cream and garnish with cinnamon sticks.

Join the world of Latte Lovers and Latte Artists.

Here are some excellent links.

Wikipedia: Caffè Latte

Latte Art

How To Make Latte Art

Video: Latte Art

Latte Art 101

World Of Latte Gallery

Latte Art Photo Album

Chocolate Hazel-Nut Ravioli

Photo By echoleigh

Chocolate-Hazelnut Ravioli

Recipe courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis

Show: Everyday Italian

Episode: I Love Chocolate

Ingredients:

16 wonton wrappers

1 egg, beaten to blend

1 cup chocolate-hazelnut spread (recommended: Nutella)

Vegetable oil, for frying

16 fresh mint leaves

Nonstick vegetable oil spray

Granulated sugar, for dredging

Powdered sugar, for dusting

Directions:

Line a baking sheet with plastic wrap. Place 1 wonton wrapper on the work surface. Brush the edges of the wrapper lightly with egg. Spoon 1 tablespoon of chocolate-hazelnut spread into the center of the wrapper. Fold the wrapper diagonally in half over the filling and press the edges of the wrapper to seal. Place the ravioli on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining wonton wrappers, egg, and chocolate-hazelnut spread. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. Add enough oil to a heavy large frying pan to reach a depth of 2 inches. Heat the oil over medium heat to 350 degrees F.
Working in batches, carefully add the ravioli to the hot oil and cook until they are golden brown, about 45 seconds per side. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the ravioli to a plate lined with paper towels to drain. Then, transfer the cooked ravioli to another baking sheet and keep them warm in the oven while frying the remaining ravioli. (The fried ravioli can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cool them completely, then cover and refrigerate. Before serving, place them on a baking sheet and rewarm in a preheated 375 degrees F oven just until they are heated through, about 7 minutes.)
Spray the top side of the mint leaves very lightly with nonstick spray. Working with 1 leaf at a time, dredge the coated side of the leaves in sugar to coat lightly.
Arrange 2 fried ravioli on each plate. Dust the ravioli with powdered sugar. Garnish with the sugared mint leaves and serve.

The Leftover Queen

Whether you are seeking ways to serve up some rather ordinary leftovers and turning them into a visual feast for the eyes and the soul, or looking for some other mouth-watering recipes to reward you long overdue palate, then look no further and take some special time to visit

The Left Over Queen

Jenn's brilliant Blog is chocked full of all kinds of wonderful delights including a Pantry and Herb Garden with some superb and very selective information for every individual who enjoys spending time in the kitchen. I especially enjoy having the convenience of a Food Safety Section available on Jenn's Blog....it is so perfect if you would like to know more about food handling and storage. Jenn also has a wonderful Forum available on her Blog....a great way to communicate with other Food and Culinary Bloggers and to share our love of cooking. Best of all is Jenn's absolutely fantastic Foodie Blog Roll. What a great way to have just heaps of other Food Blogs available at your fingertips. With Jenn's permission I have added it to my own Blog here for easy access to so many other Blogs. You can find it in my right hand sidebar, and you can contact Jenn on her Blog if you wish to add it to your Food Blog too. It is an excellent blogging tool for all food bloggers.

Thanks so very much for inviting me to your Foodie Blog Roll Jenn!

A Reese's Moment

Even a squirrel knows that a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup can't be resisted. Well I love them also but unfortunately they are not available here in New Zealand as far as I can find. I already have a food wish list made up for the next time I go back to visit my family in New York, and a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup is on top of the list next to a huge bag of Cheese Doodles, a New York Pepperoni Pizza, a bottle of Black Cherry Soda, a New York Bagel and my list goes on.

Well yesterday I found a yummy looking recipe for homemade Peanut Butter Cups and I just have to make them soon. I also searched the Internet and found heaps of recipes using Reeses Peanut Butter Cups, so once I become proficient with the following recipe I will have to start trying some of the other recipes I Googled!

Here is the recipe!

Reese's Peanut Butter Bars

Yield: 10-12 servings

2 sticks (1 cup) margarine melted

2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 cup chunky peanut butter

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

12 oz milk chocolate (chocolate chips or chocolate bar works good)

Line a 9x13" pan with parchment or wax paper.
Mix 2 sticks of butter, powdered sugar, peanut butter, and graham cracker crumbs. Spread mixture on the bottom of the pan.
Melt chocolate and spread over mixture in pan. Let set in a cool place. Remove from pan and cut into desired shapes.

Melting Chocolate:

You can melt the chocolate either in the microwave or in a double boiler.

In a Microwave Oven

Place coarsely chopped chocolate in a microwave-safe container and microwave at MEDIUM (50 percent power) for 1 1/2 to 4 minutes, until the chocolate turns shiny. Remove the container from the microwave and stir the chocolate until completely melted. Stir milk and white chocolates after about 1 1/2 minutes. Because of their milk proteins, they need to be stirred sooner than dark chocolate. (If overheated, these chocolates may become grainy.)

In a Double Boiler

Place coarsely chopped chocolate in the top of a double boiler over hot, not simmering, water. Melt the chocolate, stirring until smooth. Remove the top part of the double boiler from the bottom.

Reeses Official Web Site

Information About Reeses Peanut Butter Cups