Spiced Chocolate & Orange Hot Cross Buns

by giraffescanbake // April 18, 2014 // 1 Comment

The perfect recipe for this Easter weekend!

I’d been thinking about what to bake for Easter for a while and my mind kept going back to hot cross buns, even though I’m not a huge fan of them. So my challenge was to make these traditional Easter buns even more festive and tasty, and so these spiced chocolate & orange hot cross buns were born, I think I did a pretty good job!

These sweet and sticky buns are loaded with chocolate just like the Easter bunny intended and warmed up with lovely spices and hints of orange. They’re finished off with a gooey, sticky orange glaze to give them that extra yum factor!

These do require a little patience to make, but with only two rising times you’re not doing too badly for a hot cross bun recipe! And even though they’re “quick”, you won’t see any decrease in yummyness (a technical baking term), they’re still soft and delicious! It’s a fairly simple recipe too, and a bit of a messy one while you’re rubbing the butter into the flour, cocoa, spices and salt with your fingers. Then it’s spoon city as you stir in the sugar and yeast and then beat in the eggs and milk. Knead. Rise. Knead some more (adding chocolate and orange!) and rise again until finally it’s time for the oven (but not before those all important crosses!), then you just glaze and eat! These are best served warm and with lashings of butter, preferably this cinnamon honey butter because it’s to die for!

Hot cross buns are traditionally served on Good Friday so I am a little late with this post, but let’s be honest you can enjoy these yummy buns all Easter weekend, even all year (I know, I’m just talking crazy now!!). It may be midnight in the UK, but it’s never too late to whip up a batch of yummyness, so get your apron on and get baking, you’re family will thank you!

[recipe title=”Spiced Chocolate & Orange Hot Cross Buns” servings=”12″]
Ingredients

For the buns:

400g strong white flour, plus extra for dusting
25g cocoa powder
1tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp mixed spice
1tsp salt
85g chilled unsalted butter, chopped
100g golden caster sugar
2 sachets dried instant yeast (7g each)
1 large egg, room temperature
190ml lukewarm milk
75g dark chocolate, chopped
Zest of 1 orange
75g chopped candied orange peel

For the crosses:

75g strong white flour
1 tbsp vegetable oil
5tbsp cold water

For the glaze:

Juice of 1 orange
50g golden caster sugar

Method

For the buns:

Sift the flour, cocoa powder, spices and salt into a bowl. Add the chopped butter and, using your gingers, rub the butter into the flour mix until you get a breadcrumb texture. Stir in the sugar and yeast and make a well in the centre
Whisk together the warm milk and egg and pour into the well, quickly beat with a wooden spoon until combined.
Knead on a lightly floured surface for around 10 minutes, until you have a soft, smooth dough. Put in a large, lightly oiled bowl covered with oiled cling film. Leave to rise for an hour in warm place until doubled in size
Place the risen dough on a lightly floured surface and knead in the chocolate, zest and candied peel until it is all distributed evenly.
Divide into 12 equal balls and shape into smooth buns. Place on a lightly oiled baking tray, leaving a small gap between each roll. Cover loosely with oiled cling film and leave to prove in a warm place for about 45 minutes or until doubled in size. The buns should now be getting cozy and touching each other.
Preheat the oven to 200C/390F

For the crosses:

Mix the flour, oil and water together to form a smooth paste. Pop into a piping bag and snip the end off.
With a serrated knife, score the tops of the buns with a cross. Pipe the mixture along the lines, you can use your knife to cut off the flow.
Bake the buns in the oven for 15-20 minutes until firm to the touch

For the glaze:

Put the sugar and orange juice into a small pan and heat on low until all the sugar as dissolved
Bring to the boil and bubble until thickened, around 3 minutes.
Once the buns have been removed from the oven, turn out onto a cooling rack and glaze.

Notes:

The buns are best served warm
They will stay fresh in an air tight container for about 3 days, but buns that are going stale will still be great toasted
You can freeze them too, just wait to glaze them. Once defrosted, warm through and glaze before serving.

[/recipe]
Happy Easter Everybody!

Devil’s Food Cake

by giraffescanbake // March 30, 2014 // 12 Comments

Happy Mother’s Day everybody!

Today is Mother’s Day in the UK and to celebrate I made my mum a yummy devil’s food cake, complete with fresh whipped cream, chocolate ganache and chocolate truffles! If you’re gonna do chocolate, you may as well go all out! This recipe will be for the devil’s food cake, you can pair it with whatever you like of course (white cloud frosting is an excellent pairing)!

I got this recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction, and I can tell you right now I didn’t change a thing! I adore her blog and all of her recipes (her cookbook is on my wish list on amazon too!), you should definitely check her out.

This recipe calls for a cup of strong, hot coffee. Coffee is one of those things that brings out the flavours in chocolate, you add it to your chocolate cake recipe and instantly you’ve intensified your chocolate goodness! This is actually the first time I’ve added coffee to chocolate cake, which is terrible I know, but I have this crazy aversion to coffee I violently hate it. And although I knew in theory that I wouldn’t be able to taste the coffee, I was convinced I would be able to! Of course, I couldn’t taste it at all in this cake and I’m now cursing myself for being such a baby and not doing this sooner. This cake is so rich and fudgy and just delightful, everything a devil’s food cake should be!

I said above that I didn’t change anything in this recipe and there’s good reason for that. Every single ingredient is perfectly matched with what you want this cake to come out like. The oil makes it lovely and moist, butter would only distract from the deep chocolate flavour. You want to use natural unsweetened cocoa for this cake, do not use dutch processed or the bicarb won’t react with the cocoa and you won’t get that gorgeous reddish tint and that distinctive flavour. And if you take away the buttermilk you won’t get such a moist crumb (Sally said to trust her on that and I did!). Then of course without the coffee that chocolate certainly won’t hit you so hard. All that’s left are your sugar, flour and eggs – you of course need the eggs to be room temperate as is true with pretty much any baking. If, like me, you always forget to take your eggs out of the fridge you can bring them to room temperature by letting them sit in warm to hot water for about 5 minutes.

This cake has a nice quick bake on it too, you definitely don’t want to over bake it and take away any of that moistness (count how many times I’ve said “moist” in this post!). Share the batter between two 9″ sandwich tins and bake for about 25 minutes or until your cake tester comes out clean. My cake is actually a 6″ as I made cupcakes out of it too! You can then fill and ice it with whatever you love with chocolate, my pairings definitely made it all that much richer but I think this cake would be great with milk chocolate frosting as Sally had it or even vanilla, yum!

This one’s for you mum, thanks for being the best mum ever! (and she enjoyed it very much!)

[recipe title=”Devil’s Food Cake”]

Ingredients

1 and 3/4 cups plain flour
1 and 3/4 cups caster sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not dutch processed)
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
1 tps salt
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup freshly brewed strong hot coffee

Method

Preheat oven to 350F/170C. Grease and line two 9″ cake pans
Sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, bicarb and salt and set aside
Combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs and vanilla using a stand mixer or hand mixer then gradually add the dry ingredients with the mixer on low. Add the coffee. You will have a very thin, water like batter – don’t worry, it’s supposed to be like that!
Pour the batter evenly between the tins and bake for approx 25 mins or until your cake tester comes out clean.
Leave to cool in pan for 5 minutes, then turn out on wire rack and leave to cool completely before filling and frosting

[/recipe]

Cocoa Brownies

by giraffescanbake // March 23, 2014 // 7 Comments

These are super fudgy and chocolatey brownies that are made with cocoa powder rather than solid chocolate, crazy right?

I was having a major brownie craving but I didn’t have your traditional brownie ingredients in the house. I did however have cocoa, so I threw caution to the wind and these were born! It was the best decision I’ve made in recent history.

Like most of you probably are, I was put off by the idea of making cocoa brownies. What’s the point in eating brownies if they’re not perfect! But when the craving becomes too strong, you can’t be held responsible for your actions. After some searching on the internet I found this recipe that was adored by so many blogs I came across, the recipe is originally by Alice Medrich and since trying it by myself I can see why everybody was raving! It ticks every brownie box and then some, fudgy delightfulness in every single bite!

I have a shameful history with brownies. I tried to make them many, many years ago and they came out rock solid (I’m pretty sure J K Rowling modelled Hagrid’s rock cakes on my brownies) and I was distraught. That was about 10 years ago, this is only the second time I’ve made them since (I don’t deal with failure well!), and what a way to restore my brownie making faith in myself! I really do urge you to give these a go the next time you have a real brownie craving and only have cocoa in the cupboards, you won’t regret it and neither will your tummy!

These brownies are made pretty similarly to your regular brownies and you can do it by hand. You melt the butter, sugar, cocoa and salt together. Let it cool if it’s hot and add the eggs and vanilla, beat the mixture until it’s smooth and shiny and add the flour. Beat hard for a couple of minutes, giving you a pretty thick mixture. I had some m&ms laying around so I mixed those in too. Then bake for no more than 30 minutes and voila, yumminess is in your hands (make sure they’re gloved hands, no burns please!).

[recipe title=”Cocoa Brownies”]
Ingredients

140g unsalted butter
250g caster sugar
75g unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
60g all purpose flour

Method

Preheat the oven to 325F/160C and grease and line 8×8 baking pan.
In a large bowl, combine the butter, sugar, cocoa and salt and melt in the microwave in 30 seconds intervals, stirring between until all melted.
If the mixture is hot, leave to cool slightly as you don’t want to cook the eggs!
Using a wooden spoon, stir in the vanilla. Then beat in the eggs one at a time, combining each time until batter is thick and shiny.
Add the flour and stir vigorously for a couple minutes. Stir in any nuts or chocolate chips you may be adding.
Pour into pan and spread evenly.
Bake for 25-30 minutes until a skewer comes out almost clean, a few moist crumbs is good, you just don’t want them still wet and you definitely don’t want to over bake them!
Leave them to cool on a wire rack before cutting into squares. Put them in the fridge for a few hours to get nice clean lines when you cut them!

[/recipe]

Peanut Butter Stuffed Chocolate Pudding Cookies

by giraffescanbake // March 11, 2014 // 14 Comments

Possibly the best cookies in the world!

I don’t even feel bad about making that statement, I mean look at them! They are soft, rich chocolate pudding cookies filled with tonnes of chocolate chips and chunks and stuffed with a sweet and salty peanut butter filling. I sent some with the bestie to work with her and one of her colleagues said they were the best thing she’s ever eaten, so you don’t have to just take my word for it!

I adore pudding cookies, they’re so much softer and fluffier than regular cookies, the pudding keeps them nice and light despite all the chocolate and peanut butter that’s packed into them! And in terms of chocolate these cookies have it all; cocoa powder, chocolate pudding mix, chocolate chips and chopped chocolate. I like to mix chocolate chips and chopped chocolate as it gives you a nice variety of textures and melting. Normal chocolate will melt and ooze, whereas chocolate chips have stabilisers in them to help them keep their shape. We don’t really get pudding mix in the UK but as I’m in the US right now I’ve stocked up on a few boxes and am bringing it back with me so I can have pudding cookies whenever I like!

The peanut butter stuffing is your standard peanut butter filling mix; peanut butter, icing sugar and vanilla. It’s a classic mix and doesn’t need any changing. I mixed up a batch and put in the fridge for 30 minutes to stiffen up. Then just scoop the cookies and roll them into balls, about 2 tbsp per cookie, and flatten them into disks. Roll up a small ball of peanut butter filling, about 1/2 tsp, and place in centre of the cookie disk, roll the cookie around the peanut butter and roll into a ball so none of the filling can be seen. Place on cookie sheet and flatten ever so slightly. Repeat with all cookies. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours – chilling is an important step as it stops the cookies from spreading too much and flattening out.

Bake for about 15 minutes until just set around the edges and tops. It’s easy to over bake dark cookies but you really don’t want to do that with these, so remember that cookies firm up as they cool and there’s nothing wrong with cookies that are slightly under baked!

These are definitely my favourite ever cookies and they’re so versatile. You can stuff them with whatever you like and add nuts, different types of chocolate, marshmallows, anything – the cookie world is your oyster! I’ve made a Nutella stuffed version of these too and I’ll post those up another day. Play around with them though and let me know the results and what you do with them, I’d love to hear about and see your pudding cookie creations!

[recipe title=”Peanut Butter Stuffed Chocolate Pudding Cookies” servings=”Makes approx 24 cookies”]

Ingredients:

2 cups plain flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup caster sugar
3/4 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1 box instant chocolate pudding (NOT sugar free or cook-and-serve)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 eggs
12 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
6oz chopped dark chocolate, chopped

For the Peanut Butter stuffing:

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup icing sugar
1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract

Method:

Mix the peanut butter, icing sugar and vanilla together in the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Mix the flour, bicarb and cocoa powder in a bowl and set aside
Combine butter, sugars, pudding mix and vanilla in a mix bowl. Beat until smooth and creamy. Beat in the eggs one at a time until fully combined. Gradually add the flour mixture and beat until just combined, scraping down the sides to make sure all is incorporated.
Stir in chocolate chips and chopped chocolate by hand until evenly dispersed.
Scoop about 2 tbsp of cookie dough per cookie and roll into balls. Place onto lined cookie sheet and flatten into disks. Take peanut butter filling and roll into small balls, about 1/2 tsp per ball, and place in centre of cookie disks. Roll the cookie around the peanut butter filling, ensuring no peanut butter can be seen and roll back into balls. Place on cookie sheet with about 2 inches between each cookie, they shouldn’t spread too much but you want to leave plenty of room either way.
Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 2 hours, this will stop the cookies from spreading and flattening out too much.
Preheat the oven to 350F and bake for about 15 minutes, until cookies are just set around edges and tops.
Leave to cool on wire rack. They are great eaten when still warm though (just make sure you let them cool enough so you don’t burn your tongue!)

[/recipe]

More fancy cookies – Viennese Whirls

Pistachio Pudding Cookies – just as yummy!

Love peanut butter? Try these Chocolate and Peanut Butter rolls!

Happy Valentine’s Day

by giraffescanbake // February 15, 2014 // 4 Comments

Why have one Valentine’s cake when you can have three!

I bought some super cute Wilton heart pans, they’re only 4″ across but they make for super adorable little heart cakes which are perfect for valentine’s day. Or, if you prefer, “I love me” day! Plus they were only $10 in Target!

I made these for my best friend/other half. I have a terrible track record of messing up cakes I make for her (there’s a certain Mondrian birthday cake we do not talk about) but these turned out really great looking and taste just as good!

All three are the same flavour, I did consider making three different flavours but who has the time for that in one day! They’re chocolate and hazelnut, one of my favourite flavours ever (and also the flavour she chose). Don’t give me access to a jar of nutella and a spoon because the whole thing will be gone in a day! Yum, yum, yummy!

These are my fave chocolate cake recipe with chocolate hazelnut ganache and chocolate hazelnut swiss meringue buttercream. Seeing as I did all three the same flavour, I got creative with the decorating. The first is the Ferrero Rocher cake, the sides are covered with chocolate hazelnut SMBC and chopped hazelnuts and then topped with chocolate hazelnut ganache. There are also a few ferrero rochers hiding inside the cake too!

The second is filled with the SMBC and ganache, then covered in SMBC. Then I surrounded it with Cadbury’s Chocolate Fingers and topped it with V Day themed M&M’s. I know this design has been done by everybody and their mother, but it’s one of my favourite designs and one I’ll never get tired of (There’s a two tier cake I did last month with chocolate fingers that I’ve not shared with y’all yet and it’s one of my favourites!). Besides, cadbury fingers are like crack, how could you ever get bored of them?!

The last is my least favourite. It’s filled with the SMBC and ganache and then decorated with the SMBC in kind of roses. The problem I had here was I was using a large open star nozzle to do the roses (I’m currently in Atlanta so don’t have all my decorating supplies to hand) which is doomed to fail considering the cake is only a 4″! Plus it was snowing and icy outside so the heating was nice and high, giving me a very unworkable buttercream, with the amount of butter there is in SMBC working in warm temperatures is never easy!

I also made some cupcakes to go with them because why not! There’s a lot of cake in this apartment right now (such a horrid problem to have, I know!). I’m gonna do a full post on the cupcakes with the recipe (which I used for all three cakes and the cupcakes) next week. For now here’s a taster:

I hope you all have a lovely Valentine’s Day! If you’re not celebrating it or hate it, then I hope you have a happy Friday with lots of love and happiness! If you’re single today, please don’t be sad about it, go out and buy yourself something nice because you are fab and you deserve it! And whether or not you’re in a relationship, treat somebody you love to something nice, even if it’s just some nice words or some novelty chocolate, while I agree you should love and appreciate those you care about all year round today is a great day to spoil them a little extra 🙂 Have a great day my lovelies, I’ll see you next week!

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