Coconutty Strawberry Cup Cakes and a Bleeding Heart!!!

Cupcakes are the first love of my kids... why only kids, I think, everyone loves to eat cupcakes! The cute and simple look of the cupcakes, the varied flavors and the easy-to-make nature -  all these have made the cupcakes so popular, I guess! 

All my baking projects are done in my microwave - and for the cupcake projects, I do really feel the need of an OTG. Because, in a microwave you cannot bake more than 8 cupcakes at a time. And 8 is not at all a considerable count, when it comes to cupcakes... you know, what I mean! So, I have bought another set of 8 cupcake moulds, which make it 16... at least this count of cupcakes will last for couple of days for my family. 

This strawberry cupcake recipe is so unique, probably you've never tasted it. The regular cake shops generally don't keep cupcakes, even if they do - you'll not get this one, I am sure. So the only way to taste this super-simple strawberry cupcakes, is to make them at home. 

I have learnt this recipe from my baking guru, Lynette. During the fondant class, she wanted to treat us with something unique, as the after-class snacks and then she brought these lovey-dovey cutey-cutey cupcakes. We were simply amazed to see her skill - these cupcakes were absolute delicacy and yet so simple to make. Perhaps that's the mastery of any art, which teaches you to make elegant yet simple art pieces - and baking is an art!!!

Coming back to the recipe - prepare the cupcake batter - it will be a simple vanilla batter which I've mentioned earlier in my blog - The Basic Vanilla Cake. Additionally for the decoration purpose you will need -

Strawberry Crush - 2 cups

Water - 4 cups

Desiccated Coconut - 2 cups

Preheat your oven at 160C. Do not put cupcake liners on the cupcake moulds. Butter the cupcake moulds nicely and then pour the batter into the moulds. The moulds should be only 3/4th part filled with the batter, as you need to keep some space for the cupcakes to increase in size while baking. Place the moulds inside the preheated oven and bake for 15-20 mins at 160C. Bring out of the oven and carefully remove the moulds. Place the cupcakes on a flat plate or sheet and allow them to cool at room temperature.

In a big bowl, mix the strawberry crush with water. 

Spread the desiccated coconut in another large plate. 

Take each cupcake, dip them in liquid strawberry crush for a minute or so and then immediately, roll over the desiccated coconut. Spread some amount of coconut on top too. Do this for all the cupcakes. As a final decoration, spread 1 teaspoon of strawberry crush on top. As an alternate, you can put 1 fresh strawberry slice on top. Allow the cupcakes to chill inside refrigerator for at least 4-5 hours before serving.

I had made only 16 cupcakes, so I had some extra batter. I decided to make another heart-shaped cake with that. 

And here is what came out from the microwave.

Again sprinkled the desiccated coconut on top and drizzled some amount of strawberry crush... which ultimately looked like a bleeding heart!!! Huh....

Happy baking! See you again!!! :)

A Vanilla Sponge Cake without Oil/Butter

Hi friends!

I am back after 2 weeks of hibernation!!! In this 2 weeks, I went for a short vacation to Goa and enjoyed to the fullest with my family. It is a place of beautiful scenic locations, good food, warm and caring people and unlimited shopping! So, I would recommend this place to all of you.

Anyway, back to my topic! This is not a travel blog - but may be I should soon open one travel blog too, to share my travelling experience with all of you. :)

There are several recipes pending to share with you. Today, I am going to talk about one of my latest bakes - a fresh strawberry cake! This one I baked for my sister's birthday and it came out quite well. But there were few issues, which I experienced while working on this cake. I'll share those too, later on. Let me first begin with the vanilla sponge cake.

This fresh strawberry cake I prepared using a vanilla sponge cake and it was made without oil or butter. When I put a lot of icing on top of the cake, I try to balance the fat-quantity by making the cake fat-free. You have to keep a track of the health quotient too, while preparing the desserts. A sponge cake is also light in weight, so it does not give you that heavy feeling after eating.

It is very easy to prepare this basic cake. You will need only few ingredients.

The dry ingredients are -

Flour or maida - 1 cup minus 1 tablespoon

Powdered sugar - 1 cup minus 1 tablespoon

Baking powder - 1 teaspoon

The wet ingredients are -

Eggs - 4 large

Hot water - 1 1/2 tablespoon

Vanilla essence - 1 1/2 tablespoon

The process is very much similar to the chocolate sponge cake recipe. Please note that you should be very careful in measuring the items.

In a large bowl, sieve in flour and baking powder. Blend well and keep aside.

Break the eggs and separate the white and yellow parts in 2 different bowls. The white part should be kept in a large bowl.

Use the electric beater to beat the egg white until stiff peaks arise. Gradually add sugar by couple of tablespoons at a time and keep on beating. Once all the sugar is used, add the egg yolks and again beat for some time. Next add the vanilla essence and mix well.

Now gradually add boiling water in few drops and beat well. Now the mixture will be light, fluffy and almost 3 times in volume.

This is the time to set your oven in preheat mode (180C). Also prepare your cake pan by greasing and dusting.

Slowly fold in flour into the egg mixture. While doing this, don't add all the flour at a time. Sprinkle in small amount on top of the batter and fold in nicely.

Pour the batter in the pan and place inside oven to bake at 180C for 30-35 minutes.

The cake will leave the side of the pan, when it is done. Also the top will spring back when you touch on top. Insert a knife to check the doneness and if ready, then remove from oven.

Allow it to cool down at room temperature and then bring out the cake from the pan. Wrap the cake with a cling wrap and place inside refrigerator for future use.

In my next blog, I'll share the fresh strawberry cake making procedure using this vanilla cake.

Till then, ciao!

Few Important Baking Tips for the Beginners

Initially I was planning to make this blog on a basic chocolate cake recipe, because many of my friends already requested me for uploading this. It seems that, chocolate cake is the hot-favorite for everyone... the situation is same at my end, too! So, even I can't wait to share the recipe and techniques of baking a chocolate cake. But...

Yes, there is a "But" for which I changed my mind and decided to share few important tips, before you go and try the chocolate cake recipe. Let me explain the "But" first and then will go into the tips part. One of my friend tried the Vanilla cake recipe, but most sadly the attempt was not successful. Here I can give a disclaimer that all my recipes are tried and tested for multiple times in my kitchen. It is also true that many a times, even I found that the cake might got over-baked or it could have been baked for few more minutes! So, there is nothing to loose your heart. As I've told you earlier, baking a cake is a form of art - the more you do, the more you improve. I am not an expert, I am also learning and gathering experiences along with you. So, it's a journey together...

Coming back to Tips part - I've never learnt baking from any proper place... my learning is completely from the recipe books and my experience. So, whatever tips I've gathered from my baking experience, I am sharing those here -

1. Measuring ingredients is a very important part in baking. All your ingredients should be exactly same as mentioned in the recipe. So take extra care to measure your ingredients.

2. Beating the batter properly is another important part of the task. Check that the batter increases at least 2-3 times in volume. Best result is obtained when you use an electric beater, Also, don't mix everything together, first prepare the liquid mix, beat well and then gradually fold in the dry ingredients, to get the best output. Fill the cake pan to its 3/4th height - always remember that the cake will rise and there should be enough space in the pan to prevent spilling.

3. Always preheat the oven to desired temperature. If you are using convection microwave then thoroughly read the manual. I've noticed that the baking temperature might vary from brand to brand or say oven to oven. So, if the recipe mentions - bake at 150C for 30-35 mins, and if you find that the cake is not yet done, then let it bake for another 5 minutes or more, until the cake is done. The microwave manual might give you the exact temperature of baking. Also, you will learn from your experience. So, at first try, if you see that the recipe is not giving successful result then you can adjust accordingly. Like, you can adjust the time according to the doneness of your cake.

4. Don't forget to oil and dust your baking pan. Dusting should be done liberally, so that the cake pan has a fine layer of flour before you pour the batter. You can also use baking paper to make the lining. This will help to remove the cake from the pan.

5. Don't disturb the baking process, when the oven is on. Once the baking starts, let it continue till the given time. Also when the cake is ready, you can keep it inside the oven for some more time. Allow the cake to cool down a little within the baking pan before removing.

6. The baking test should be done, when the cake rises and the baking time is over. Use a sharp knife and prick at the middle of the cake till the bottom, where it has risen. The knife should come out absolutely clean. If you see any wetness, then let it bake for another 5 minutes. Repeat the test as long as the cake is not properly done.

7. Once the cake is out, keep it at normal room temperature and cover it with a clean towel. Be careful not to keep it under fan or open air, it might loose its moist.

Let's follow these tips carefully... and I hope, you'll surely be successful in baking a cake pretty soon...

Enjoy baking!