FUDGY BROWNIES with FROSTING

8 squares (8 oz) unsweetened baking chocolate
1 cup butter
5 eggs
3 cups white sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups chopped walnuts

1 1/4 cups white sugar
1 cup heavy cream
5 squares (5 oz) unsweetened baking chocolate
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line 2 7x11x2 rectangular pan with foil or wax paper.
2. Place 8 ounces of baking chocolate with 1 cup of butter in a saucepan and on medium heat, melt the butter and chocolate together. Stir to mix.
3. Place the eggs, 3 cups of sugar, and 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract in a large bowl, and beat with an electric mixer on high for about 2 minutes. Reduce the mixer speed to low, and beat in the melted butter-chocolate mixture.
4. Beat in the flour until just combined (do not overmix), and stir in the chopped walnuts. Spread the batter in the prepared pan.
5. Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with fudgy crumbs, about 30 minutes. To test doneness, insert a stick (toothpick, if you wish but I always use a barbeque stick) and make sure there are still a few crumbs on the stick. Do not wait for the "tester-comes-out-clean" stage. I believe you will have a dry brownies if you do so. Cool in the pan before frosting.

To make frosting:

1. combine 1 1/4 cup of sugar with the heavy cream in a saucepan over medium heat, and stir until the sugar dissolves and the mixture begins to simmer, about 3 minutes.
2. Reduce the heat to low, and let the mixture simmer for 7 minutes without stirring.
3. Remove the cream mixture from the heat, and stir in 5 ounces of baking chocolate and 1/2 cup butter, stirring to melt and blend the chocolate.
4. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; whisk until smooth.
5. As opposed to letting the frosting cool down, I divided the frosting in half and immediately spread the hot frosting on the brownie pan, allowed it to cool and refrigerated it for an hour before cutting it into bars.
6. You can add sprinkles to decorate it.

NOTE: from http://mybakingmomma.blogspot.com/

MOIST CHOCOLATE CAKE

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 cups all purpose flour
• 3 cups sugar
• 9 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp instant coffee
• 1 tbsp baking soda
• 1 1/4 tsp salt

• 1 1/4 cups vegetable oil (can use canola oil)
• 3 cups water
• 4 tbsp white vinegar
• vanilla (I usually omit this)

or if you're making just a small cake, you can use just half of this recipe:

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 4 1/2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1/2 tbsp instant coffee
• 1/2 tbsp baking soda
• 1/2 + 1/8 tsp salt

• 1/2 + 1/8 cup vegetable oil (can use canola oil)
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 2 tbsp white vinegar
• vanilla

PROCEDURES:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celcius or 350deg.
2. Don't forget to lower temperature by 10degC or 25degF if baking on a dark or non-stick pan.
   
3. Grease a 10x14 rectangular or two (2) 10x2 round pans or line muffin pans with baking cups. If using the half recipe, use two (2) 8x2 round pans. One recipe will make about 40 3-oz cupcakes.
4. Mix all the dry ingredients thoroughly and make a well in the center.
5. Add the liquid ingredients and mix until free of lumps. You can use a stand or hand mixer for this. If using a mixer, there is no need to make a well in the center.
   
6. Pour into baking pan/s and bake for 40-60 minutes or until toothpick/cake tester comes out clean when inserted.
7. For cupcakes, bake for 25-30 minutes.
8. Transfer to wire rack and cool before frosting.

*****

CHOCOLATE FUDGE FROSTING

(this one's very yummy)

Mix the following and cook over double boiler until thick.

• 1 cup cocoa powder
• 2 cups sugar
• 3 cups milk (I use evaporated filled milk)
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
  

1. Stir occasionally to remove lumps and when mixture starts to thicken, stir more often. This may take longer to cook but it's worth the time.
2. Cook until thick enough to spread on cake. Do not attempt to cook this directly on fire,
3. Allow the icing to cool down a bit before frosting the cake.

NOTE: from http://mybakingmomma.blogspot.com/

MOCHA CAKE ala GOLDILOCKS

INGREDIENTS:

For the Cake:

• 6 large egg yolks, at room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon coffee/espresso granules [Nescafe instant coffee recommended]
• 1 teaspoon cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon water
• ½ cup canola oil
• 1 cup cake flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 6 egg whites, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar

For the Mocha Buttercream

• 1 cup sugar
• 4 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 3 sticks (12 ounces) unsalted butter, soft, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon coffee/espresso granules
• 1 teaspoon cocoa powder
• 5 teaspoons water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 5 teaspoons amaretto

TOOLS & EQUIPMENT: hand mixer or stand mixer, 2 9”x2” cake pans, 2 baking sheets, parchment paper cake comb (optional, for decoration); OR a 10.5”x15.5”x1” jelly roll pan if making a roll

PREPARATION

1. For the Cake: Preheat oven to 375°F with racks in the upper middle and lower middle positions. Spray two 9”x2” round cake pans with baking spray, and line the bottom and sides with parchment paper.

2. Whisk together egg yolks and sugar in a large bowl (or bowl of a stand mixer) over low, then medium speed, until creamy and light yellow in color.

3. Dissolve espresso or coffee granules and cocoa powder in water and vanilla in a small bowl, getting rid of lumps while stirring. Pour into the butter-sugar paste, along with canola oil, and beat until well combined.

4. Remove large bowl from stand mixer (if using one) and sift cake flour and baking powder over it. Stir with a wooden spoon until well blended, scraping the sides of the bowl once.

5. Whisk egg whites and cream of tartar into stiff peaks in a medium bowl, and fold into the mocha batter, a dollop or two first to liquefy the thick batter, and then in thirds.

6. Divide the batter between two cake pans and place each pan on a baking sheet. Bake on two racks for 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the pans and exchanging the pans between racks halfway through. The cake is done when the tops become golden brown and the cake tester comes out clean when inserted in the middle.

7. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then carefully turn over on the wire rack, right side up. Cool completely before icing.

8. For the Buttercream: Whisk sugar and egg whites for 3 to 5 minutes in a medium heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (water should not touch the bottom of the bowl), until meringue is hot to the touch. The sugar granules will be dissolved and you will be left with a fluffy marshmallow cream-like froth.

9. Remove bowl from heat and beat for 5 minutes with a hand mixer set to medium speed, or pour into a bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment to mix.

10. Add half of the butter and beat with a hand mixer (or paddle attachment for stand mixer) until smooth before adding the next half to combine. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula and give it a quick stir. Beat again on medium-high for another 6 to 10 minutes to thicken.

11. Dissolve cocoa and espresso/coffee granules in water, vanilla extract, and amaretto in a small bowl. Pour into the buttercream and beat for 2 minutes, scraping the sides at least once.

12. To Assemble the Cake: Dot 3 3”-wide parchment paper strips with buttercream. Use the icing to stick the 3 strips into a triangle on a plate or cake stand. Dot the center bottom of the cake with icing, and place cake on top of the strips. These will keep your plate clean while frosting the cake.

13. Spoon about ½ cup of frosting on top and spread it evenly with a flat metal spatula. Place the second layer of cake and spread a thin layer of icing over the entire cake and let it stand for 15 minutes. Spread a thicker layer of frosting over the side, working from the bottom up to the top. Frost the top by placing a mound of icing and spreading it to the side. You can decorate the cake with the remaining frosting as you wish.

NOTES

1. To decorate: You can use a cake comb to create ridges on the side of the cake. The traditional Goldilocks mocha roll and cake are decorated using a cake comb. I added finely grated chocolate at the top.

2. To make a mocha roll: From Step 6 onwards — Pour batter into a 10.5”x15.5”x1” jelly roll pan (sprayed with cooking spray and lined with a sheet of wax paper, and another coat of cooking spray) and bake for 12 to 15 minutes with the rack on upper middle position, rotating the pan halfway through. What I usually do is bake for 6 minutes and rotate and add minutes as needed to let it bake thoroughly. It is done when the top is golden brown and cake tester will come out clean. Lay flat a dry kitchen/tea towel that’s slightly larger than the pan and dust with a thin layer of powdered sugar. Remove cake from the oven and turn pan over onto the towel. Carefully peel the wax paper and scooping the towel from underneath, slowly roll the towel and cake together. Cool on a wire rack with the seam side down. After about an hour, unroll and remove the towel, spread a generous layer of mocha buttercream. Depending on your preference, you can put as much as half on it. Re-roll the cake and frost the outside and sides. OR you can use the other half of the icing to fill another roll. [Instructions to make the butter cream is the same.]

NOTE: This recipe was featured on Gourmeted.com October 13, 2010 http://gourmeted.com/2010/10/13/mocha-cake-ala-goldilocks/

Marble Pound Cake

Ingredients:
2/3 cup butter, cubed room temperature
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
3 pieces eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/3 cup boiling water

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan, set aside.
2. Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
3. In a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
4. Add eggs one at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla.
5. Add the flour mixture in two batches alternately with the buttermilk beginning and ending with flour. Set aside one-third of the batter.
6. In a small bowl, mix cocoa powder with the boiling water. Stir until smooth. Add the cocoa mixture to the reserved cake batter and stir until well combined.
7. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan in two layers, alternating a scoop of vanilla batter and chocolate to look like a checkerboard. Then, run a knife on the batter with a swirling motion to create a marble effect.
8. Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes or until cake tester inserted comes out clean. Rotate the pan halfway through the baking time.