Cakes

Cupcakes From My Childhood

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I should not be here writing this post. I should be arriving in Sydney, exhausted after a long and grueling 24 hours of flying from New York. But that last minute trip just wasn’t meant to be. I won’t bore you with the details but fingers crossed I’ll be in Australia visiting family by the end of the year. Of course, the fact that this trip hasn’t worked out has got me a bit nostalgic, thinking about my childhood and the good (sweet!) memories of growing up in Sydney.

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Oh, I also have a little bit of spare time up my sleeve and have been meaning to write about these cupcakes that I made a few months back for quite some time. These cupcakes were an attempt at recreating my favorite (and simple) cupcakes that I have very clear memories of enjoying as a child.

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Soft Centered Chocolate Puddings For Two

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It’s been a couple of weeks since anything sweet was baked at our place and with the cold weather approaching we needed a dessert for a cozily cold afternoon at home. We happened to walk by our local Mast Brothers Chocolate store which inspired us to bake Bills famous soft centered puddings. My husband likes to call these chocolate souffles though I’m not sure if they are. What makes a souffle a souffle anyway?

The chocolate I used for this recipe is the Mast Brother Chocolate buttons. They sell them at their store in Williamsburg, Brooklyn and they can also be purchased online. But any good quality dark chocolate will do. I’ve used Lindt 80-85% dark chocolate before as well as a bunch of other varieties. High cocoa is key in making this a nice rich dessert.

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I’ve used the recipe out of the book Bills Open Kitchen for years to create these soft centered puddings. The pudding is cakey, warm but slightly gooey in the middle and the serving size is perfect. You don’t feel sick from eating it but you do feel satisfied and content. This dish is a fantastic dessert, sure to please your guests even though it’s super easy to bake and the batter can be prepared in advance and popped into the oven when you’re ready to go with sweets.

The only thing I sometimes change about this recipe is the quantity. I’m often just making it for two. So below, you’ll find the halved recipe of the original with some tips to make halving a little simpler. Bon Apetit!

Ingredients

  • 3.5 ounces good-quality dark chocolate, chopped
  • 1.75 ounces unsalted butter, chopped
  • 1.5 eggs, lightly beaten (Put two eggs in a measuring jug, whisk then tip out the excess to get to 1.5 eggs)
  • 1/4 cup superfine sugar (I add just a little extra if the chocolate is extra dark)
  • 1 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Place the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, making sure the bowl does not touch the water, and stir until just melted.
  2. Place the eggs, sugar, and flour in a bowl and mix until just combined.
  3. Gradually mix in the chocolate mixture. Pour the mixture into four 1 cup ovenproof ramekins and place on a baking tray.
  4. Bake until the edges are set, about 15 minutes. Serve with cream or crème fraîche OR just ice cream.

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Shana Tova Honey Cake

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Just wanted to wish everyone a Happy (and sweet) Jewish New Year. I’d definitely recommend trying out this honey cake recipe that I found on SmittenKitchen. WOW, this cake looked pretty impressive if I do say so myself.

Some tips of my own:

  1. Be sure to update the recipe to use 1 tsp of baking powder instead of the original 1 tbsp.
  2. I used a 9″ Kugelhopf Pan to make my cake with lots of baking spray but no parchment paper.
  3. I didn’t quite use all the batter from the recipe. Left behind about 1/2 – 1 cup of batter.
  4. If you’re in two minds about whether or not to use the whiskey I say DON’T use it. I did use it and I regretted it. I just don’t like that alcohol flavor in the cake.

Have a great new year and don’t forget to dip some apple in honey and go blow a shofar!