Gluten Free Mutella Cupcakes



 

R.I.P DIET?

Delish Mutella cupcakes are in the house! 

 

Why are these called Mutella? 
There are loads of Nutella cakes and recipe ideas online, I wanted to create a cupcake which won't make you feel like you are committing a culinary crime eating it. I've made this recipe gluten free and really simple. Nutella is combined in the sponge, filling and butter cream.
 Plus I like the name Mutella.

 From childhood to adulthood Nutella is a jar of goodness that fills a gap after a horrible or great day at school or work. My mum hardly ever bought it and when she did I would finish a jar in five days and even insist on taking a small filled tub to have with crackers at school. Dangerous times. I think that's how my obsession with chocolate began! 

 I still get a kick from piercing the gold film and reaching into the jar with a grin on my face, still having no portion control when I spread it on toast. The thicker the better.

I made these cakes for a friend who has set up her own beauty parlour in Shoreditch. I met her four years ago and she worked every year on her goal until she found the right location. She deserved some fun cupcakes to celebrate.

 

Here's the recipe for 12 cakes.

Ingredients:
60g unsalted soft butter
150g soft brown sugar
1 medium egg
20g cocoa powder
1 tbsp Nutella
150g Gluten free plain flour
Half a tsp bicarbonate of soda
120ml Hazelnut milk mixed with 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
Extra tsp white wine vinegar

Mutella Love:
120g unsalted butter
250g icing sugar
50g cocoa powder
1 tbsp Nutella
1tsp Cola essence
2 tbsp Hazelnut milk

Lichtenstein pop art muffin cases and signs from a boutique cake shop or online.
Fruit corer
Milk and white chocolate balls
Red edible glitter
Dr Oetker gold lustre spray
Large rose tip piping nozzle
Piping bag


Method:
Preheat oven 180°c or gas mark 4.
Line cupcake tin with cases.
Whisk butter and sugar until fluffy, add egg and whisk until smooth.
Stir in cocoa powder, flour and buttermilk.
Add bicarbonate of soda and vinegar to get a CO2 reaction which enables the cakes to rise.
Whisk again and stir in cola essence.
Spoon a generous amount in each case add a teaspoon of Nutella on top and swirl into mixture with cocktail stick, bake for 25 minutes.
Leave out to cool completely.
Using fruit corer add half a teaspoon of Nutella into each cupcake and replace with cake in corer.

Make the buttercream by whisking all the ingredients listed.
Pipe on cold cupcakes and spray gold.
Dab glitter on butter cream, sprinkle chocolate balls and stick cool signs on every cake.

LOVING Disclosure at the moment.

Enjoy album and recipe.x

 

 

 

 

Baked Egg with Kale, Mushroom & Nettle.

Remember Egg Cupcake?

Time to re visit a classic and refresh the blog with flavours I'm loving at the moment. Kale and nettle rock! These greens are super foods and incredibly versatile.

 

This is really simple and takes no more than twenty minutes. You will need silicon cupcake cases or generously grease a muffin tin.

 

Ingredients:

 

2 Eggs

8 Kale leaves

8 Stinging nettles leaves

3 medium mushrooms

1 tbsp Olive oil

 

Method:

 

Preheat oven to 180° c.

Chop mushrooms and fry in olive oil, add kale and nettles and cook for 5 minutes, keep to one side.

Meanwhile line cases in a cupcake tray or on a flat baking tray.

Put kale mixture in each cases, leaving space in the middle for the egg.

Crack 1 egg in each case, ensuring nothing spills out.

Bake for 8 minutes until white and serve with salad or dippy soldiers.

 

Nettles are the new spinach.
I'm going to be blogging loads about these powerful leaves over the next week. Meanwhile next time you see a bunch, pick them (wearing gloves) and wash ready for some extra special recipes on MixitCookit.

 

XX

 

 

Coriander, Chilli, Dill Linguine

Coriander and chilli are like my two sidekicks in the kitchen. Whenever I cook anything savoury they are my staple ingredients that bring fire and flavour to everything they touch. I wanted to share this really simple and quick dish which I love to make, it gives me a sense of being at home crossed with a pasta obsession during university.

 

For students this is cheap, cheerful and very tasty. Adding tuna, salmon or crab meat would compliment the dill wonderfully.

 

Ingredients for one:

 

1 small chilli, deseeded and chopped finely.

30g fresh coriander

20g fresh dill

Olive oil

Half a lemon

Pinch of sea salt

Half a tsp of turmeric powder

100g linguine pasta

 

Method:

 

Chop chill and herbs and keep to one side.

Boil linguine according to packet instructions.

Drain and add 1 tbsp olive oil and turmeric, stir well and lastly add herbs and chilli.

Squeeze lemon juice over pasta before serving and add salt if you need it.

 

Enjoy.x

 

Chocolate & Cherry Cake with Figs.

 

 

 

 

 I'm loving chocolate a lot more lately. Only the good stuff makes it into my baking cupboard, bars from small organic shops and anything injected with orange essence or zest. Dangerously in love with Green and Black's sea salt bar, have you tapped into it? It's the big sister of their collection, each square has the perfect amount of salt. Normally I  consume chocolate in a few seconds but with this bar I let each segment sit on my tongue and let the magic happen.

 

The power of chocolate over a women is pretty special. I always re iterate this message....

 

BUY GOOD QUALITY!

 

Why you say?

1. Dark chocolate is known to reduce stress levels.

2. Hot chocolate is great as cough medicine!

3. High cocoa in chocolate can lead to better focus for a few hours.

 4. Ladies you know spending a bit more on decent chocolate beats a cheap block and the difference is in the taste.

 

 

Here is a delectable cake that's easy to assemble and extremely tasty. Try to make sponges the night before, I find they are easier to handle. This chocolate cake recipe makes three even sponges in sandwich tins, which is better than baking the whole mixture then slicing it into three. Each sponge takes 20 minutes to bake.

 

 

Ingredients for sponges:

225g unsalted butter

200g caster sugar

200g self raising flour

2 tsp baking powder

25g cocoa powder

4 medium eggs
1 tsp cola essence

100ml milk

 

Filling:

Cherry jam

250ml double cream

 

Ganache:

200g dark chocolate

284ml double cream

2 tbsp caster sugar

 

Topping:

2 large figs

Manuka honey

 Yellow edible glitter

Dr Oetker gold lustre spray

Method:

 

Preheat oven 180°c

Put all the cake ingredients in a mixing bowl and whisk.

Grease and line two sandwich tins with removable bases (if you already have three then great!)

Fill each tin with even amounts of mixture and bake for 20 minutes each on the top shelf.

Keep out of tin and let them cool completely.

 

Meanwhile make ganache by boiling cream and sugar then pouring over cold chocolate. Stir well and leave to cool until spreadable.

 

Decide on which sponges will be best to go at the bottom and top, maybe slice a bit off the top if the rise wasn't even.

Whip double cream until stiff.

Spread cherry jam on top of one sponge and whipped cream underneath the middle sponge. Sandwich these two and do the same again but instead of cream use a bit of ganache underneath top sponge.

Cover the whole cake in ganache, leaving a tablespoon's worth in a bowl for the figs to sit on.

Lightly spray the top gold.

 

Before you serve:

 

Cut figs in quarters and roast them (15 mins) or grill (8 minutes) with a drizzle of Manuka honey. Sprinkle a bit of gold glitter on each one.

 

Add figs in the middle, using ganache as glue.

Thank you Zest magazine for chocolate facts.

This weekends special song and entering my running playlist...

ROAR by Katy Perry

 

ULTIMATE Chocolate Cupcakes

For the past two weeks I've been thinking, focusing and working on a cake creation which I wanted to perfect. Creating a chocolate cupcake isn't as easy as it sounds; creating the ULTIMATE chocolate cupcake is a challenge. Last week I sieved through five recipes for the perfect chocolate sponge and still wasn't satisfied. With motivation about to fizzle out like cheap popping candy I cleared my head and went to yoga. As soon as I got home, the radio was switched on and my not so sexy union jack apron was ready to be stained with cocoa powder. As well as it being Chocolate Week 14-20th October, I'm also making these to win a trip to NYC courtesy of Dr. Oetker. Fingers crossed people!

Right, if you want to make these cupcakes let me give you a few home truths:

1. They contain a lot of chocolate, I tried to incorporate chocolate in every step.

2. Buy good quality chocolate when baking, it makes a massive difference to texture, taste and appearance. Also you might get people putting in orders once they taste these!

3. Focus and be a perfectionist when it comes to accuracy and appearance.

4. Think YES YES YES. Not only when you bake but anything you put your hand to. Don't give up or serve cakes you wouldn't eat.

 




 I've been loving Janet Jackson this week....

Ingredients for cake sponges.

150g caster sugar

60g unsalted butter

1 large egg at room temperature

20g cocoa powder

150g plain flour

100ml semi skimmed milk

Bottle of white wine vinegar

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp vanilla essence

Filling 1:

150g melted white chocolate 

50g milk chocolate chips

 

Topping 2:

Dark chocolate custard butter cream

60g unsalted butter

125g icing sugar

2 tbsp hot water

1 tbsp custard powder

20g cocoa powder

Topping 3:

White chocolate salted butter cream

6og butter

125g icing sugar

50g melted white chocolate

Half a tsp of sea salt

Topping 4:

Milk chocolate cola butter cream

60g butter

125g icing sugar

1 tsp cola essence

20g cocoa powder

Chocolate Dust:

Milk chocolate chips

White chocolate chips

Edible lustre white hologram glitter

Blend milk chocolate chips with half a teaspoon of glitter until like dust and keep to one side in a small cup or bowl.

Repeat with white chocolate chips.

▶ Ready to bake?! 

We have bake off....

Method:

 Preheat oven 180°c.

First make the sponges by whisking butter and sugar until pale.

 In a jug add milk with two tablespoons of vinegar and let it rest for a while.

Add egg to butter and sugar and whisk until everything combined. 

Next add cocoa powder and flour.

Pour in milk and vinegar mixture, then baking powder and 2 tsp extra of vinegar.

Scoop into 12 cupcake cases and bake for 20 minutes. 

Once well risen and smelling delicious keep out of the oven and let them cool on a cooling rack.

CAKE SPONGES DONE..

Once cakes have completely cooled, start measuring out all the other ingredients for toppings so you are prepared.

Filling 1: melt white chocolate in a bowl suspended over boiling water, let it cool for a few minutes.

Using an apple corer, make a hole in one cupcake and fill with half a teaspoon of white chocolate and four milk chocolate chips. Do this with all the other cakes and replace sponge lids from corer. 

Use any remaining white chocolate to pour over cakes. Then let them cool.

Make topping 2 by whisking all ingredients and pipe one circle only around each cupcake.

Make topping 3 exactly the same way but add melted white chocolate once its slightly cool not really hot. Pipe in the middle only.

Topping 4 is similar, add all those ingredients in a bowl and whisk away. I love cola essence. Once I found it I went back and filled my basket with 20 bottles. No joke.

Pipe this buttercream on top of white buttercream and add a white chocolate chip as a cute touch.

Now this part was really fun and my creative baking brain is incredibly happy with the outcome. In my opinion chocolate chips are great in cookies and thats about it. I put them in a blender with glitter and BOOM a wonderful dusty texture of magical choco dust is formed. Sprinkle on each cupcake for a bit of sparkle.

 Good luck and let me know what you have been mixing and cooking.

If you want to get involved with chocolate week, definitely submit your lovely creations to Dr Oetker's FB page.

Favourite song from Janet Jackson:

Got 'Til It's Gone'

M.x

Chocolate and Lavender Cupcakes

 

 You got to love a bit of Missy...

 

 

 When I think of lavender an image of Mayfield farm in Surrey, Radox bubble bath and a relaxing candle springs to mind. To be honest, cake is last on the list. Pairing lavender with chocolate works wonderfully, and don't they look oh so pretty?! There isn't too much lavender working through these cupcakes, I didn't want a pungent aroma of this sweet aromatic essence as it has the power to dominate over the chocolate.

 

Don't believe they have all gone, could totally do with one now! Blogging a day after I've made cakes is like a slow butter knife piercing the heart -slow and painful. Next time I will keep a cupcake next to me whilst I type!

 

 

 For 12 cupcakes:

 

 60g unsalted butter (room temperature)

 100g caster sugar

50g lavender infused sugar

1 egg, at room temperature

20g cocoa powder, sifted

150g Wholemeal flour

 140ml buttermilk

1/2 tsp, Bicarbonate of soda

1 1/2 tsp white wine vinegar

 

Frosting:

 

Purple food gel

125g unsalted butter

250g icing sugar

Lavender infused sugar to decorate

Chocolate twirls

 

Method:

 

Preheat oven 180° c.

Beat butter and both sugars until fluffy, then add egg and buttermilk.

Add flour, bicarbonate of soda, vinegar, and cocoa powder.

Scoop mixture into 12 muffin cases.

 Bake for 20 minutes.
 Once risen and smelling like chocolate, take out immediately and leave to cool until cold to touch.

 

Butter cream:

 

Whisk butter, icing sugar with a drop of purple gel.

Stir through a teaspoon of lavender sugar.

 Pipe a small swirl on each cupcake, top with chocolate twirls and sprinkle some more sugar on top.

 

DONE!

 

XXX

Zesty Rainbow Cake

 

Well an upside down rainbow, only because turquoise is my favourite colour.

 

Now playing...

 

Rainbow cake.

The blogger who came up with this idea originally made it for her best mate. A simple and creative idea which was a huge online success amongst all cake fans. The original recipe features vanilla essence in each coloured sponge which I think is a tad boring to be honest. I matched a few colours of the rainbow with some natural zests. Imagine tasting the rainbow as well as seeing it.

 

 

Zippy knows what I mean.

 

Recipe from BBC Good Food.

This recipe needs to be done three times for six sponges.

I did some of the messy work for you, split the cake mixture so each bowl contains 380g then add half a teaspoon of colour.

 

For each of these colours add these lovely flavours before putting in the oven:

 

Red sponge: half a teaspoon of strawberry essence

Yellow: lemon zest (only half)

Green: lime zest (only half)

Purple: sprinkle a bit of lavender sugar on mixture.

Orange: orange zest (whole one)

Turquoise: half a teaspoon of vanilla essence.

 

Once cakes are completely cold, store in an airtight container and assemble the next day.

 

 

Trim tops of each sponge with a sharp knife, so they sit flat on each other. Keep refrigerated once cream cheese frosting is spread all over and in between each sponge.

 

Either keep white or go crazy with multi coloured sprinkles.

 

ENJOY!

 

 

 

Strawberry Jam Cupcakes

 

Gorgeous beaches, a few hot men, beautiful women and constant sunshine, I'm reminiscing about my previous holiday to Ibiza. This song reminds me of chilling in a bar on the white island watching the sunset. Now I can't stop listening to it whilst cooking and running. I think Florence and The Machine has been knocked off number one as my most repeated artist!

 

 

 

 

 I recently organised a surprise party for a special family member and wanted to make a batch of interesting looking cupcakes. The main birthday cake was a zesty rainbow cake which will be on the blog soon.

As well as toffee popcorn I wanted to bring in a classic sponge with an indulgent twist.

 

These cupcakes have strawberry jam oozing out the centre, strawberry essence, milkshake and a fresh strawberry in a chocolate cup, tempting anyone to grab it.

 

This is a lovely recipe to make with children too. Especially dipping strawberries in chocolate.

 

Ingredients:

 

125g unsalted butter

125g golden caster sugar

1 tsp strawberry essence

2 medium eggs at room temperature

125g self raising flour

Half a teaspoon of baking powder

2 tbsp milk

 

An apple corer would be handy.

 

12 fresh strawberries, washed and dried on kitchen roll.

Organic milk chocolate about 100g melted.

Organic strawberry jam

125g unsalted butter

250g icing sugar

Poppy gel colouring

1 tbsp strawberry milkshake

 

Method:

 

Preheat oven 180° c.

Cover a plate that will fit in your fridge with baking paper.

Melt chocolate and dip each strawberry in, making sure only half is covered. Place on baking paper and refrigerate.

 

Beat butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, then add eggs.

Add flour, baking powder, essence and milk.

Scoop mixture into 12 muffin cases.

 Bake for 25 minutes.
 Once risen and slightly golden, take out immediately and leave to cool until cold to touch.

Using an apple corer on each cupcake, add half a teaspoon of jam and replace sponge lid.

 

Butter cream:

 

Whisk butter, icing sugar, bit of colouring and strawberry milkshake. I normally coat the end of a teaspoon with colouring gel and stir through mixture, then whisk for an even colour.

 Pipe generously on each cupcake.

Take strawberries out, pop them onto each cake and then you're done!

 

This was how they were all presented. You know if I came to your picnic I would totally rock up with a basket full of cupcakes.

 

M.x

Chocolate Salted Toffee Popcorn Cupcakes

OOO WHAT A MOUTHFUL!



While I was baking up a storm, Daft Punk was booming through the kitchen.

 



 

 

I'm a big fan of popcorn and I've been observing how the food industry has been getting very creative with its flavours. If anyone has ever tried Propercorns fiery worcester sauce and sun-dried tomato then I'm sending out a cyber high five to you right about now. IN-CRED-IBLE.

I thought it was about time I put some popcorn on top of some delicious cupcakes.

 

If you're a fan of the salty and sweet combo, give these cupcakes a try when you have to turn up to a party with goodies.

 

Ingredients for 12 cupcakes.

 

125g salted butter

 140g caster sugar

200g self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

2 medium eggs

1 tbsp toffee sauce

2 tbsp milk

150g Green and Black's sea salt chocolate, chopped into small chunks.

 

Topping:

 

125g salted butter

250g icing sugar

1 tbsp toffee sauce

1 tbsp milk

Toffee popcorn

Dr Oetker gold spray

 

Method:

 

Preheat oven 180° c.

Beat butter and sugar until combined and fluffy, then add eggs one at a time.

Add flour, baking powder, stir in toffee sauce and chocolate. Don't over beat.

Scoop mixture into 12 muffin cases.

 Bake for 25 minutes.
 Once risen and slightly golden, take out immediately and leave to cool until cold to touch.

 

Butter cream:

 

Whisk butter, icing sugar and milk.

Stir through toffee sauce.

 Pipe generously on each cupcake, top with popcorn and drizzle more sauce on top.
Quickly spray a bit of gold on each cupcake.

 

DONE!

 

 

 

Raspberry and Watercress Smoothie

 

Tuesdays album..

 

 

 

Another wacky smoothie which sounds awful but tastes great.

After profusely googling, I found out watercress contains MORE calcium than a cup of whole milk! The shock was so overwhelming I bought an extra bag to try in this mornings mix.

 

45g Watercress

6 Raspberries

Half an avocado

Light soy milk 150ml
100ml coconut water

1 tsp Manuka honey

1 large banana

3 fresh sage leaves

All in a blender for 2 minutes.

Colour: light brown.

Taste - really sweet and no hint of sage or watercress!

Health benefits from watercress: contains MORE iron than spinach and it increases levels of protective antioxidants in the blood.

Health benefits from raspberries: helps lift moods and improves vision as well as aids digestion.

Join the green revolution.

 

Search for 'Mita' on Vine and use these short clips as mini manuals, this way you can see what I'm putting in my smoothies as well as reading about them on here.

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2216852/Eat-way-facelift-Watercress-latest-wonder-food-battle-anti-ageing.html

 

http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2007/nov2007_sf_watercress_01.htm

 

http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/raspberry.html