Mini Boston Cream Pies

It's Lent and I'm not eating sweet things.
Promise.
Sundays are an exception though, we indulge a little and eat a little thing or two that's fancy. Something like these gorgeous little mini Boston Cream Pies. I've never had a Boston Cream Pie but I'm guessing it's sublime, because these were too. They reminded me of profiteroles--obviously the cake part was a different texture, but it's all the same mouthwatering flavours and explosions in one bite. Flavours I cannot resist!
There's the lovely, giving cake-iness of the cupcake, then that divine vanilla cream custard filling that oozes and slides down in perfect harmony with the bitter sweet fudgy chocolate ganache. They're rich, they're decadent and they're just glorious. Got to have another one.

MINI BOSTON CREAM PIES (adapted from Martha Stewart)

GANACHE:
1 cup chocolate chips
2/3 cup thickened cream

In a medium microwave proof bowl, combine the chocolate and cream. Microwave for one minute on high, then remove and stir until well incorporated. Refrigerate for an hour or two to thicken.

CUPCAKES:
6 tbsp butter
1/2 cup milk
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cup plain flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence

Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease a 24 hole mini muffin tray.
In a medium, microwave proof  bowl, place the butter and milk. Microwave on high for a minute or two, until the butter has melted. Remove from microwave and add the sugar, flour, baking powder and salt to the bowl. Whisk until well combined, then beat in the eggs and vanilla essence. Spoon this batter into the cupcake tins so that each is about 3/4 full. Bake for 15 minutes. Set aside on a cooling rack to cool.

CUSTARD:
1 cup milk
2 large egg yolks
3 tbsp. sugar
1 1/2 tbsp. cornflour
20g butter, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla essence

Place milk in a small saucepan and bring to the boil.
Meanwhile, in a separate saucepan, combine yolks, sugar and cornflour and whisk over a low heat. When the milk has boiled, add a few tablespoons into the yolk mixture and whisk. Gradually add the remaining milk and whisk vigorously on a medium heat. Custard will thicken. Continue to whisk until boils, and remove from heat. Scrape into a small bowl and sit in a few inches of cold water or ice, to cease the cooking process. When cooler, add the butter in two installments, stirring until combined. Add essence, mix and refrigerate until cool

ASSEMBLY:
When the cupcakes are cool, take a knife and hollow out part of the centre of each (don't remove the cake too closely to the bottom of the cake, as this makes them more difficult to handle when completed.) Spoon custard into each hollow, then pair with another cupcake so that the custard sides merge. Spoon the thickened ganache over the top of each doubled up cupcake. Serve immediately, or refrigerate until ready to serve.

Makes 12

NOTES: You could also make these in a regular 12 hole muffin tray. Instead of placing one cupcake on top of another, simply cut the top off with a serrated knife, hollow out a little of the bottom and fill with custard, then replace the "lid".
Custard stores for 2-3 days when refrigerated.

Pipeable White Chocolate Ganache

What foods say Christmas to you?
At Christmas, I personally can't go without cherries, white chocolate and brandy custard. Gingerbread, pavlova and mince pies also come runners up. What's your favourite Christmas food?
I had a lovely lady ask me the other day how to make white chocolate ganache. She specified that it was for piping, however she was unable to get the ganache thick enough and firm enough to pipe at all. So here we have it, a recipe that's good for ganache anyway you want it--be it for dipping, drizzling, spreading or piping. It's very versatile and I think it's practically foolproof. You can use it for dipping as soon as it's cooled, or for spreading after sitting a little longer. If you want to pipe it, you whip it after refrigeration. Its a win win recipe.
I used compound Nestle's Melts cooking chocolate but you can use any type of cooking chocolate. The better quality, the better the result. Also, a little rule of thumb--always twice as much chocolate as cream!

Here we've paired the pipe-able White Chocolate Ganache with Dutch Spaculaas and fresh Cherries...perfect for Christmas!

THICK WHITE CHOCOLATE GANACHE

1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup white chocolate chips (I used Nestle compound white melts)

Place the cream in a small saucepan. Place over a medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until bubbles begin to form around the edges. Remove from heat. Add the chocolate chips, and arrange them so that the cream covers them. Place a lid on the saucepan and sit for two minutes. Remove the lid and using a hand whisk, beat until the cream and the chocolate are incorporated and smooth. Sit on the benchtop until cool enough to refrigerate. Refrigerate for an hour. Beat the ganache mixture with electric beaters, for 1-2 minutes, until thick and creamy. Pipe onto your cake or dessert as desired.

Makes approximately 1 1/4 cups of ganache

Sorry about the grainy photos--my kitchen is poorly lit!

NOTES: If you desire pourable or dip-able ganache, simply use before refrigeration. The ganache thickens the longer you let it sit, in or out of the refrigerator.

Romantic Getaway Chocolates

My darling husband surprised me this weekend by booking a romantic escape for two nights up in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland.  It’s a long weekend, part of which is to be spent in front of a log fire in our own little wood cabin, nestled in one of my favourite parts of the world. It’s a beautifully romantic spot and I’m all geared up for it…babymoon here we come!

Does anything say romance than a few nights away from it all…and a box of chocolates?  Mind you the non-alcoholic bubbly will be coming along with us too (I tell you its just as good as the real deal) and plenty of these...

ROMANTIC CHOCOLATES

You will need:

A chocolate mold of some sort (unless you mean to make truffles)

Good quality chocolate for the cases

Any of the following filling ingredients.

THE BASICS:

What to know before starting:

Its worth getting good quality chocolate for your chocolate making adventure. Your chocolates will only be as good as the quality of the chocolate you begin with. Never rush the melting process. A good way to ensure even melting and avoidance of burning, is to have a bowl of boiling water sitting underneath another bowl containing your chocolate. Be sure the bowl containing your chocolate cannot fall into the water as this will curdle your chocolate.
Use of a pastry brush to obtain a good even coating of the bottom and sides of your chocolate mold is ideal. Place these chocolate shells into the freezer for quicker setting time and do not remove until you have filled them with the desired filling and sealed with a finishing layer of melted chocolate. Return to the freezer until set before removing.

EASY FILLINGS FOR MOLD CHOCOLATES:

An easy and quick way to fill chocolates is to make up some flavoured icing. Using icing sugar, food colouring and essence of your choice, mix with a small amount of water until you get a desired consistence. Fill the pre-made chocolate shells and seal with a layer of melted chocolate. The now flavoured, gooey centres with thicken slightly on setting and will look gorgeous upon biting!

USING LEFTOVER SWEETS AS A FILLING

Left over sweets such as cake are a lovely alternative filling, and a surprising one for the recipient. Moisten broken cake with a little cream and spoon into the chocolate shells. Seal with a finishing coat of melted of melted chocolate to finish and remove after further refrigeration.

CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES (can also be used as a chocolate filling)

250g dark chocolate, finely chopped

1/3 cup cream

Bring the cream just to the boil in a heavy saucepan. Remove from heat and add the chocolate to the cream. Beat until the chocolate has melted and both ingredients are well combined. Place in the refrigerator until firm, approximately 1-3 hours. 

You can use as a filling in prepared chocolate cases, finishing them off with a layer of melted chocolate to seal the bottoms. Alternately, you can use a melon scoop to make into ball shapes and then freeze until firm. You have lots of options such as coating in melted chocolate and decorating, or rolling them in cocoa powder, crushed nuts, coconut etc depending on your tastes. You can also add a flavouring such as peppermint essence to the ganache before refrigeration for a variation. Small chunks of apricot, nuts or mints also make interesting additions to your ganache.

A Sinfully Wicked Dessert for Valentine's Day

Underneath a light, fluffy cloud of cream lies a dark, handsome, smooth and totally irresistible chocolate ganache, laced with a hint of cointreau, surrounded by...more chocolate. So good it's almost bad. It is not innocent, it is not kind (to your waistline) but it's so worth it. You would probably say yes to more except it is so rich, so creamy and wickedly intoxicating that it would be a crime to go back for seconds. Maybe the next day. But not any time soon.

The culprit:

Chocolate Cointreau Ganache Mousse with Cream

Don't say I didn't warn you. 

It will call you from the refrigerator at the most inconvenient times, tempting you to have that second taste of its wicked goodness. Yes, it was love at first sight.

CHOCOLATE COINTREAU GANACHE MOUSSE WITH CREAM

Mousse recipe adapted from Taste

300g good-quality dark chocolate, coarsely chopped

3 eggs, separated

125ml (1/2 cup) light olive oil

60ml (1/4 cup) Cointreau liqueur

50g cream

150g extra chocolate

cocoa powder to dust

Melt 300g chocolate in the microwave, checking every 20 seconds to ensure it does not burn. Stir until the chocolate is smooth. Set aside to cool.
 Meanwhile, melt extra chocolate in a separate bowl. Spread generously into four cup molds, ensuring the sides are thick, as well as the bottom. Refrigerate until set.
Beat the egg whites in a clean dry bowl until firm peaks form. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition until combined.
Add the melted chocolate and beat until combined. Gradually add the oil and Cointreau, beating until well after each addition.
Gently remove the set chocolate cups from their molds.
Spoon the chocolate mixture into each chocolate cup. Cover and place in the fridge for 4 hours or until firm. Serve with cream and a sprinkling of cocoa or chocolate curls on the top.

NOTES: this recipe can be made one day ahead. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

Another naughty version of this amazing cointreau mousse:

CHOCOLATE COINTREAU MOUSSE TARTS

Shortbread Tart Cases:

125g butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup pure icing sugar
1 tsp. vanilla essence
1 cup plain flour
1/4 cup cornflour

Using an electric beater, beat butter, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add flours, and stir until well combined. Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead until smooth. Roll with a rolling pin and press our 20 circles. Place each in the bases of a greased muffin tray. Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden. Cool.

Using the above mousse recipe, pipe chocolate mousse into each shortbread case when cooled. You may find this easier after refrigerating the mousse for several hours prior to piping.

MAKES 20

Quick Fixes For Unexpected Or Forgotten Parties

Ever forgotten that you invited a whole swag of people to come over for dinner weeks ago, and find yourself with a few hours to organise something impressive? Everyone's had one of those days where they just could not get everything done that they wanted to, and then to go and spend hours trying to create a fancy dessert for guests is just out of the question. So I've created a super quick and extra delicious recipe for these moments in time. Not only do they taste superb, they also look fantastic in all their simple but deadly glory.

BLACK FOREST RIPPLE DESSERTS

300g thickened cream
150g chocolate
 300g chocolate ripple biscuits
100g extra chocolate
50g extra cream
12 cherries with stems

Whip cream and fold through melted chocolate.
Place 12 biscuits face up on a serving platter. Spoon a dollop of chocolate cream onto the centre of each. Place another biscuit on top of the cream. Top with another dollop. Place one more biscuit on top of each stack.

Melt extra chocolate. To make ganache, stir into this chocolate the extra cream and immediately pour onto each individual dessert. Top with a fresh cherry and refrigerate until served.

Makes 12

Dessert Me Not

Give me any excuse and I'll be in the kitchen making a dessert. Give me any occasion and I'll be in there trying to make a fancy one.
The funny thing about this one is I literally dreamed this dessert to life. I woke up and just had to make it.
Now I have to admit, many of my self-made recipes do not pan out, or need plenty of reworking before they are edible. I remember as a small child, occasionally my mum would allow me to have free range of the kitchen ingredients and let me cook what I wanted. I remember my first ever creation...a sponge-like slice, involving many eggs and coloured sprinkles. She was so brave to let me experiment. And I am sure she took a bite and smiled as if it was wonderful, but to this day I wonder how much of it ended up in the bin.
But this one is so simple, it just cant go wrong. It is gorgeous, easy, effective and would make a great addition to the Christmas banquet table. I know it will be on mine.

FESTIVE CHOCOLATE BASKETS WITH WHITE GANACHE AND TIA MARIA COCONUT

100ml cream
200g white chocolate buttons
1/4 cup desiccated coconut
1-2 tbsp. Tia Maria Liqueur 
250g Dark chocolate buttons


Melt the white chocolate in the microwave, stirring often until  buttons have melted and the chocolate is smooth. Sit to cool.
When cool, add the cream and stir to combine until smooth. Sit to thicken.
Meanwhile, take the dark chocolate and melt. Stir until smooth. Take some plastic wrap and brush on the dark chocolate in a circular shape. Make sure the chocolate is a thick layer, then arrange inside the hollows of a muffin tin. Refrigerate until set before peeling from the plastic.
Place the coconut and Tia Maria together in a small bowl and combine. Spoon desiered amont into the bottom of the chocolate cups.
Spoon or pipe the white ganache over the top of the coconut. Decorate with chocolate curls or leaves. Serve with a dollop of cream.


NOTE: If your ganache becomes too hard, you can microwave it to return it to its liquid state.