Tiramisu Trifle ~ Happy V'Day to all!!!

I had a plan devised weeks before to surprise the huss on valentine's day. We had never had a romantic candlelight dinner and so that was what I had planned for him. Right from starters to main course to dessert, I had visualized the menu, how I would set the dinner table and the whole thing. But then pappu fell sick and the temperatures started dipping as if another polar vortex had hit the state and shopping for the menu had to take a backseat.

Grocery shopping was left in Mr.A's hands and you know what happens when you let men pick cabbage and cereal for you, they pick other unasked stuff too. To name a few ~ pound cake and danish. Lets talk about pound cake, shall we??? I had always wanted to try pound cake but the amount of butter that I had to use set me down. So when the huss bought the loaf, I was keen on trying it. One bite, and I knew that no one would touch it a second time. It was dry, crumbly and nowhere near moist. The huss felt the same too and so he asked me to jazz it up... Born the Tiramisu trifle, just in time for the season. As for the romantic dinner, its still in my head and right now I am working my way through the fridge, thinking what can be done with the stuff in hand.

~*What U Need*~ Sponge or Pound Cake crumbs - 1 cup For the espresso syrup: Instant coffee powder - 1 tbsp Water - 1/4 cup Sugar - 3 tbsps For the filling and frosting: Mascarpone cheese - 4 oz, I used homemade Icing sugar - 1/4 cup, sifted Vanilla extract - 1/2 tsp Heavy whipping cream - 1/2 cup Grated chocolate - 1/4 cup, I used Hershey's special dark Cocoa powder - to dust How I Made it: Take two clean trifle or normal glasses. Make the espresso syrup by heating the sugar and water till the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and then add the coffee powder and mix well. Allow to come to room temperature. Next lets make the filling, take the mascarpone, sugar and vanilla in a large bowl and whisk just until blended and smooth. In another bowl, using a hand held mixer, whip the cold cream until it forms stiff peaks. Stir about 1/3 rd of this into the mascarpone and then lightly fold in the remaining cream. Add half of the grated chocolate and fold gently. Keep refrigerated till assembling. To assemble the trifle, layer the cake crumbs and spoon over the espresso syrup on top of it. Be sure to get every spot of the cake. Spoon over the mascarpone filling and dust with cocoa powder and shaved chocolate. Repeat one more layer and give a generous dusting of cocoa powder. You could garnish with some chocolate covered espresso beans too. Chill overnight.

Serve chilled!!!

So thats it Folks...
With Love,

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Tiramisu Cake ~ for the coffee lover in me!!!

I celebrated my birthday two weeks back, yeah one year older and I don't want to talk about that. So lets jump to the only thing that I love about (my)birthdays. Yes, thats right baby ~ CAKES!!! Rich frosting clad beauties that will put a smile on anyone's face. So this year when I was thinking about what would be the "surprise cake" that the huss would get for me, he came up with the idea of "why don't you bake a cake for your birthday? Its been a long time right!!!". And I was like "whaaaaaat"... I came up with excuses, by the loads like the weather is dull, I don't feel like baking a cake or I am out of flour ~ but say what he just didn't cringe.

I needed a reason to bake and baking for my own day didn't fall in that criteria. And then I remembered, I had to bake for the kid too, it was time and since I had missed his 1.5 years milestone with a cake, I thought why not now. I had neither the piping bags nor the tips to complete a cake and so all that I was looking for was a cake with minimal decorations and this cake fitted the bill just right. How could one go wrong with dusting cocoa powder and call that decorating!!!

i.love.coffee. period. And this cake is the one if you are a coffee lover like me. Its soft, its silky smooth and its filled with coffee flavor with every bite. One Two words ~ COFFEE HEAVEN. A rich buttery sponge soaked in strong espresso syrup sandwiched with a smooth coffee mascarpone filling and frosted with a double shot coffee mascarpone frosting. Count the coffee in that line and you will know that this is one kick-a** coffee cake. And that chocolate lace border finishes the cake with such elegance. This is the first time that I tried a chocolate lace border and I am super duper happy with how it has turned out. But you could go simple and slather chocolate shavings down the sides. Anyway its your call.

~*What U Need*~ (Adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s From Home To Your’s) For the cake: Cake flour - 2 1/4 cups* Baking powder - 2 tsp Baking soda - 1/4 tsp Salt - 1/4 tsp Butter - 12 tbsp, softened Sugar - 1 cup Eggs - 2, room temperature Vanilla extract - 1 tsp Buttermilk - 1 cup** For the espresso syrup: Instant coffee powder - 2 tbsp Water - 1/2 cup Sugar - 1/3 cup For the filling and frosting: Mascarpone cheese - 8 oz, 1 1/4 cups, I used homemade Icing sugar - 1/3 cup, sifted Vanilla extract - 1 tsp Heavy whipping cream - 1 cup Grated chocolate - 1/2 cup, I used Lindt 75% Cocoa powder - for dusting Melted chocolate to make the lace border How I Made it: First prepare your cake tins. Grease two 8" round cake pans with butter and line it with parchment paper. Sift together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a bowl. Beat the butter and sugar in another bowl till creamy say 3-4 mins. Add the eggs, beating well after each addition and then beat in the vanilla. Now add the dry ingredients in three additions, adding the buttermilk after each addition (be sure that you end with the dry ingredients). Beat at medium speed, scraping down the sides into the bowl, till mixed. Divide the batter evenly between the two cake tins. Smooth the tops gently with a spatula. Bake the cakes at 180C (350F) for about 30 minutes till they’re golden and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the tins for about 5 minutes. Then unmould them, peel off the paper from the bases and let them cool completely on wire racks. Then make the espresso syrup. Put the water and sugar into a small saucepan, stirring to dissolve the sugar, and bring it just to a boil. Turn off the heat and add the coffee powder and mix well till it dissolves. Pour it into a heatproof bowl and keep aside till needed. Take the mascarpone, sugar and vanilla in a large bowl and whisk just until blended and smooth. In another bowl, using a hand held mixer, whip the cold cream until it forms stiff peaks. Stir about 1/3 rd of this into the mascarpone and then lightly fold in the remaining cream. Cool the cakes completely and even the cakes with a serrated knife. Place one cake cut side up and using a toothpick poke a few holes in your cake. Now generously brush the cake with about half the espresso syrup. Place a little less than half of the filling over the cake and smoothen it out. Sprinkle the grate chocolate over it. Put the second cake layer on the counter and once again, poke a few holes and soak the top of it with most of the remaining espresso syrup, leaving about 5 tbsp of the syrup in the bowl. Turn this second cake over and align it over the first cake with the soaked side facing down. Brush some of the espresso syrup over the top of the cake, leaving about 2 tbsp in the bowl. To make the frosting, whisk in the remaining espresso syrup into the remaining mascarpone filling and decorate the cake as desired. I made a chocolate lace border with some dark chocolate and stuck this onto the sides. Refrigerate the cake overnight.

Slice and serve!!!

** My Notes:
* To make cake flour at home, for every 1 cup of all purpose flour remove 2 tbsp of flour and replace it with 2 tbsps of corn flour. Sieve it thoroughly atleast five times.
** To make buttermilk at home add 1 tsp of vinegar for every cup of milk and let stand for 5 mins.

So thats it Folks...
With Love,

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Vanilla Genoise with Chocolate Mascarpone frosting | A birthday cake for him

Ever since I started baking cakes SUCCESSFULLY... here I mean un-burnt, un-sunk and good-to-eat cakes. Don't imagine how my previous cakes were. Simply unthinkable. Now bake to the story, ever since I started baking (edible) cakes, I make it a point to make one for his birthday. However this time, I was in my hometown with minimal access to proper baking ingredients and so what I made was an elaborate lunch for him. Yesterday was his star birthday and I didn't have a second thought to bake a cake as I had missed the previous one... I just need a reason to bake and I had one.. So wat next, baking it is. I made a Vanilla genoise, sandwiched it with chocolate mascarpone whipped frosting and frosted it with whipped cream and decorated it with dark and milk chocolate shavings.

Nothing can beat baking a cake for loved ones on their special days... and when they return back a big smile for all the love that you have put in a cake, that makes the day. I took him by total surprise when I appeared before him with a fully frosted (yeah, I hear u saying how clumsy that looks but again on my part "I am a novice") cake after his evening nap. I knew he loved it and that made my day. So off to the recipe...

Adapted from PAB For the Vanilla Genoise ~*What U Need*~ Eggs - 4, large Sugar - 1 cup Flour - 1 cup Butter - 1/4 cup, melted and cooled Vanilla extract - 2 tsp

How I Made it:
Preheat oven to 190C. Butter and grease pan. I dusted it with flour for extra caution. Beat the eggs along with sugar over a bowl of simmering hot water till thick and mousse like. Remove from water and continue to beat till the mixture thickens and triples in size (~about 5-7 minutes). Add the vanilla extract and beat in again for a minute. Fold the flour through gently, lightly till it’s mixed through well. Fold in gently, donot release the beaten in air. Take a cup of this batter in another bowl, and mix the melted cooled butter through it. Now gently fold this back into the rest of the batter. Turn the batter into the prepared baking tin, and bake for 30 minutes, till a tester comes out clean.
**My Notes
If using salted butter like Amul, skip salt else add a pinch of salt.

Chocolate Mascarpone Frosting
~*What U Need*~
Mascarpone cream - 100 gm
Low fat cream(Amul) - 200 ml, chilled
Cocoa powder - 1/4 cup
Powdered sugar - 3-4 tbsps

How I Made it:
Whip all ingredients together until you get desired consistency. Cream should be thick and holds peaks.

Whipped cream
~*What U Need*~
Heavy / fresh cream - 200 ml
Powdered sugar - 2 tbsps

How I Made it:
Whip together until stiff peaks form. Frost the sides of the cake first, and then the top. Garnish as desired.

Soaking Syrup
~*What U Need*~
Sugar - 3 tbsp
Water - 1/4 cup

How I Made it:
Pour water into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Dissolve sugar according to your taste. Let the liquid cool.

Assembling the cake:
Slice the cake into 3 and brush with soaking syrup. Sandwich with chocolate mascarpone frosting and frost the sides and top with whipped cream. Decorate with dark and milk chocolate shavings.

So thats it Folks...
With Love,

Signs off!!!

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