Sugar et al, Author at Sugar et al

Vanilla Cupcakes with Lemon, Passion Fruit and Saffron Buttercream.

1|04|2013

I hope you all had a fun Easter weekend. Mine has been one long eventful holiday. I have only been home to catch my beauty sleep and spent the rest of the time exploring a few gorgeous places around Sydney. Before I begin to tell you all about my adventures (in the next few posts), I wanted to give you a little peek into a some Easter baking I did for a friend. What better gift than something that you make at home! What better than a box of cupcakes with pretty pastel shades of frosting!

Sometimes the most unusual things inspire me to create my desserts. The other day I saw a little girl playing at the park wearing a pretty frock with frills and ruffles in shades of yellow. I exchanged a smile with her mother who caught me staring at the outfit. Little would she have imagined that pretty dresses could sometimes turn into a major baking inspiration.

I decided to play with white-yellow shades and almost instantly the buttercream flavours were there in my head. Lemon, Passion fruit and Saffron. And vanilla is always safe on the cupcake. When I think yellow I cannot help but think of Saffron. In India where I have grown up, saffron is a part of most desserts. It adds its special flavour, smell and colour to anything it is added to. It was however the first time I added it to buttercream.

Luckily I had a tin of Passion fruit puree at home so that one was pretty easy too. Though I would prefer fresh fruits anytime over canned ones, my cupboards are well stocked with tins and cans for situations like this one when dessert ideas strike. And that is without a doubt…often!

For the lemon flavour I used an essence instead of zest to reduce work. Soon I was standing with 3 bowls of buttercream in front of me. I carefully added a few drops of yellow food colouring to two of the bowls depending on the desired shade. The food colouring was necessary though saffron and passion fruit had tinted the buttercream slightly.

I bought this flowery purple box to carry the cupcakes. And I thought they looked very pretty..don’t they?

So what is your food inspiration?

Vanilla Cupcakes with Lemon, Passion fruit and Saffron Buttercream
Yields 12

Vanilla Cupcakes
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cup granulated white sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
11/2 cups all purpose flour
11/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup milk

Preheat oven to 177 degrees C and line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.
In the bowl of your electric mixer or with a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and milk in three additions. scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
Evenly fill the muffin cups with the batter and bake for about 15-20 mins or just until set and a toothpick inserted into a cupcake comes out clean. (Do not over bake or the cupcakes will be dry). Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Once the cupcakes have cooled completely, frost with icing.

Lemon, Passion Fruit and Saffron Buttercream

2 cups icing sugar, sifted
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tsp lemon essence
2 tsp passion fruit puree, strained
a pinch of saffron dissolved in 1 tsp warm milk

In an electric mixer or with a hand mixer, cream the butter until smooth and well blended. With the mixer on low speed, gradually beat in the sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Divide the frosting between 3 bowls. In the first one add the lemon essence and beat on high speed till frosting is light and fluffy. If it is too stiff, add a tsp of milk. Fill up a piping bag with the frosting and pipe swirls on 1/3 of the total number of cupcakes. Decorate with sprinkles.
In the second bowl, add the strained passion fruit puree and beat till light and fluffy. Add milk or sugar depending on the consistency of the frosting. Add a few drops of yellow food colouring to achieve the desired shade of yellow.(I wanted a light yellow shade and added about 4 drops of colour). Fill up a piping bag with the frosting and pipe swirls of Passion fruit frosting on 1/3 of the cupcakes. Decorate with sprinkles.
For the third bowl, strain the saffron milk into the frosting. While straining bruise the saffron with a small spoon so as to extract maximum colour and flavour. Beat the frosting on high speed till light and fluffy. Adjust food colour as desired. Fill up a piping bag with the saffron frosting and pipe swirls onto the remaining cupcakes. Decorate with sprinkles.

Strawberry Melting Moments. Not a moment too soon!

27|03|2013

I am so looking forward to the weekend. 4 days off…a much needed break. We have been longing for some family time. And it has been long due. First it was the boy’s health, one following the other and then my husband travelling on work. Now all we want is to slow down and huddle together in a few peaceful corners of the world and do nothing of substance.

I have a few things planned but most of it is going to be driven by how adventurous we feel every morning. If we are not too late to catch the Autumnal red gold trees , I may be able to get a few scenic pictures for you. A few guests who I love having over are also on the agenda. And plenty of food, of course. I hope to keep my pantry well stocked with sweet treats.

My little men love Melting moments. And I love watching them grab the cookies hard that crumble under the slightest pressure. It melts my heart to see them despair over the broken cookies. These are a joy to make too. They are egg less and ready in minutes. With or without frosting they always taste great!

The Easter bunnies are on their way, their baskets loaded with treasure. I am basking in the excitement of letting them uncover.

Bounty is in the air! Not a moment too soon.

Strawberry Melting Moments (adapted with variation from Taste.com)

Yields 10

125g unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup pure icing sugar, sifted
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
1 cup flour
2 tbsp custard powder
icing sugar to serve

For filling
60g unsalted butter, softened
1/2 tsp strawberry essence
3/4 cup pure icing sugar, sifted
2 drops pink food colouring

Preheat oven to 160 degrees C. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper. Using a electric mixer or with a hand mixer, beat butter, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Sift flour and custard powder over butter mixture. Stir with a wooden spoon until just combined and a soft dough forms.
Using 1 heaped tbsp of dough per ball, make balls. Place on prepared trays leaving room for spreading. Using a fork dipped in flour, lightly flatten each biscuit until 1 cm thick.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until light golden. Cool on tray for 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Meanwhile make strawberry filling: Using a whisk, beat butter in a bowl till light and creamy. Add strawberry essence. Whisk to combine. Add icing sugar. Whisk until well combined. Tint the frosting with food colour.
Spread or pipe the filling on the flat side of a cookie. Sandwich with another cookie. Repeat with remaining cookies and filling. Serve dusted with icing sugar.

‘Sunkiss’-ed! Pineapple Orange cupcakes with Cointreau buttercream.

24|03|2013

Sunkissed…nope, this time its not me! Those are my cocktail inspired cupcakes. Okay, this is my 3rd cupcake in 3 weeks. But believe me when i say these are different. These are boozy and grown up cupcakes with a generous dose of Cointreau. I know I know…looks can be deceptive!

I love liqours. I think I love them more in desserts than in cocktails. My little collection of bottles have all been procured at some time with a sweet treat in mind. Cointreau without a doubt is my favourite.

I have been meaning to make use of pineapple too in a big sort of way. That is out of guilt for not having used it in a long time. I googled up orange and pineapple cocktails and found this one using both. I am also a edible garnish fanatic. They add height to a dish and just elevates it to another level. The dried pineapple flower is simple to make and is packed with flavour. I followed the recipe from Martha Stewart.

The cupcake is super moist and I added Cointreau to both the cupcake and the frosting. I used my basic buttercream frosting recipe for this.

These cupcakes are a part of the March Sweet Adventure Blog Hop challenge. This is my first challenge and though there wasnt a lot of time since I came to know of this, the theme was too tempting..Cocktail Party. So here I am with my ‘sunkiss’-ed cupcakes hopefully making it to the finishing line.
Check out the boozey treats by others at the end of this post.

Pineapple Orange Cupcakes (adapted with variation from Joy of Baking)
Yields 13-14

2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temparature
3/4 cup granulated white sugar
1 large egg
3/4 cup sour cream
1 tbsp grated orange zest
1 cup crushed pineapple, drained
2 tbsp Cointreau

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C and place rack in centre of oven. Grease or line a muffin pan with paper liners.
In a bowl whisk to combine the flour, salt and baking soda.
In the bowl of your electric mixer or with a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy(about 2 mins). Add the egg and beat until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat in the sour cream, orange zest and Cointreau. Add the flour mixture and beat just until incorporated. Fold in the crushed pineapple.
Spoon the batter into the paper liners. Bake for 15-20 mins or until light browned and a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Remove the cupcakes from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Once completely cooled, frost with buttercream.

Cointreau Buttercream

2 cups icing sugar, sifted
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temparature
3 tbsp Cointreau
1 tbsp finely grated orange zest
Food colours (optional)

In an electric mixture or with a hand mixer, cream the butter until smooth and well blended. With the mixer on low speed, gradually beat in the sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the Cointreau and beat on high speed until frosting is light and fluffy (about 3-4 mins). Tint the frosting with the desired food colour (I have left it plain here).

To Serve: Garnish each cupcake with a dried pineapple flower on top of the buttercream and insert a toothpick in the centre to prevent it from sliding off.

I will…I can ! Earl Grey-Milk Chocolate and Lemon Mousse Duo

22|03|2013

‘As I see it. . . .
I can and I will
Everyday I tell myself that I can and I will.
I find the reasons why I can and why I will succeed.
I paint the vision of my future in my mind and I can see myself standing in the winners circle.
My success starts in my mind and I make it happen as I see it in my visions.’
-Lou LudwigThat was my healthy dose of optimism for you!

There are days when I rely heavily on some borrowed positivity to get my act together. For a person who once took pride in being determined, planned and organised with everything, life is anything but ‘organised’ at the moment. Life with two young kids can be demanding. And leave you exhausted.

On reminiscing I often wonder where all the “I wills’ of my willpower have disappeared. Funny how situations can transform you. How easy is it for any of us to get knocked down by life at times? But the good news is that I am not done with them yet. The ‘I will-s’ have been replaced with “I can-s’.

Those who have been reading my posts would know by now my weakness for desserts especially cold ones. Mousse comes right at the top of my list of ‘things that make my day’. And this duo has been on my mind for days. I have made them many times individually or in a combination with other flavours. Chocolate and lemon admittedly are not my ‘to die for’ combo. But the addition of Bergamot from the Earl Grey balances it out beautifully. Dark chocolate could be overpowering so I used milk chocolate.

In other news, the kids are excited. Daddy is back tomorrow after a long travel. A huge relief for the family. All are going to benefit from this including you. Maybe I can throw in a few more sweet treats for you here and there.

I can…I can..I CAN!

What that means is i am still somewhere on that track. If i am not running, I am still walking.

Hey…’I can’ rocks!

Earl Grey- Milk Chocolate and Lemon Mousse

Serves 4

Earl Grey-Milk Chocolate Mousse

3 Egg Yolks

¼ Cup Sugar(or to taste)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ Cup heavy cream for the custard (Crème Anglaise)

1 Earl Grey tea bag
1/2 Cup Milk chocolate chopped or broken into cubes

2 teaspoons powdered gelatine

¾ Cup Heavy Cream for whipping

Heat the ½ cup cream with the Earl Grey teabag in a saucepan. Beat the egg yolks,sugar and vanilla extract together in a bowl. When the cream reaches boiling point take it off the heat and let the flavours infuse for 15 minutes. Remove the tea bag, add the gelatine, reheat the cream till warm and slowly pour it over the egg mixture whisking constantly. Return the egg-cream mixture to the pan.

Heat the mixture under a medium-low flame, whisking constantly till the mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Place the milk chocolate in a bowl. Remove the custard from heat and pass it through a sieve into the bowl of chocolate. Let the mixture remain undisturbed for a while. Stir to smoothen out the chocolate. Cool to room temperature.

While the custard is cooling, whip the remaining ¾ cup cream to stiff peaks. Store in the refrigerator till needed.

When the chocolate mixture has cooled down completely add it to the whipped cream gradually & fold in till no white streaks appear. Pour into serving glasses till half full. Refrigerate till set, about 4 hours or longer.

Lemon Mousse

3/4 cup lemon curd, cold (recipe below)

1/4 cup sugar

1 Cup whipping cream

Whisk the cream and sugar together till you reach soft peaks. Fold in the lemon curd slowly. Pour into the serving glasses on top of the Earl grey-milk chocolate mousse. Refrigerate till set, about 4 hours.

Note: to get a stronger flavour of lemon mousse increase the lemon curd by half a cup more. I did not want the lemon flavour to be too strong in the mousse.

Lemon Curd

3 large eggs

3/4 cup (150gms) granulated white sugar

1/3 cup (80 ml) fresh lemon juice (2-3 lemons)

4 tablespoons (56 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 tablespoon (4 gms) finely shredded lemon zest

In a stainless steel bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water, whisk together the eggs, sugar and lemon juice until blended. Cook stirring constantly (to prevent it from curdling), until the mixture becomes thick (like sour cream or a hollandaise sauce). This will take approximately 10 minutes. Remove from heat and immediately pour through a fine strainer to remove any lumps. Cut the butter into small pieces and whisk into mixture until the butter has melted. Add the lemon zest and let cool. The lemon curd will continue to thicken as it cools. Cover immediately (so a skin doesn’t form) and refrigerate for up to a week.

To serve: Decorate with meringue and/or piped chocolate or a dusting of cocoa powder.