Oh so divine

Ugly Chocolates.

You know how Starbucks' Ugly Currypuff looks like so this is my version of Ugly Chocs. Of course it wasn't at all intentional. Went to the market this morning and bought a ice cube box on impulse and decided to use it as a mould for customised chocolates. It's uber easy! I think it's one of the best things to do/eat to awaken the soul.

-Melt the baking choc (I use Phoon Huat's couveture chocolate droplets of more than 70% cocoa) in a double boil plus a few droplets of Peppermint Chocolate Baileys or any alcohol you have at hand that you think mixes well with chocs. (Rum, Brandy...to name a few)
* Put the Baileys in before you turn on the heat. I learnt it the hard way yesterday. Any change in temperature in melting chocolate will cause the chocolate consistency to be terribly lumpy.

-Taste the chocolate to see if it's sweet enough. If not, add powdered/icing sugar and mix with a spoon.

-Turn the fire off.

-Add slivers of almonds or whole roasted almonds into the chocolate or coat fruits. Red seedless grapes, blueberries, strawberries and cherries are superb.

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Inspiration

I can't remember exactly how I came across the cakegirls but every single time I look at their beautiful works of art my mind goes ablank. Their cakes, I feel, are fit to be showcased at a museum. Absolutely breath-taking. They even have cakes in the form of an Ipod Mini, sushi and Cinderella's glass slipper. Check out their website.

losing my fdblog virginity.

Half a dozen of blueberry muffins out of the oven. In a matter of 1/2 an hour, half went missing. They were suppose to be for breakfast the next morning. My mom and sis were that speedy with these. There were so many muffin recipes out there but this one promised light and fluffy muffins. It's also the first time I introduced yogurt and wholemeal flour into my baking (Mom's a health freak). Initially, when I saw the hard and grainy wholemeal flour, my sis and I thought adding it in would ruin the texture of these supposedly light and fluffy muffins but they came out a little crusty on the outside but fluffy inside which gave it a little extra crunch. Since I didnt have plain yogurt at hand, I made do with fruit yogurt from Anlene. Also added a little white chocolate chips and almond slivers in the mixture and then topped a dash of cinnamon and granulated sugar on each muffin mixture.

P.S. I halved the recipe. Pictures up soon!

3 cups of all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder1
2 teaspoon baking soda1
2 teaspoon salt
10 Tbsp unsalted butter (1 1/4 stick), softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1 1/2 cups blueberries
1 Tbsp flour (if using defrosted frozen berries)

1. Adjust the oven rack to the middle-lower part of the oven. Preheat oven to 180 d.c.

2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside.

3. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar together, beating until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating until incorporated after each one. Beat in the grated lemon peel.

4. Beat in one half of the dry ingredients until just incorporated. Beat in one third of the yogurt. Beat in half of the remaining dry ingredients. Beat in a second third of the yogurt. Beat in the remaining dry ingredients and then the remaining yogurt. Again be careful to beat until just incorporated. Do not over beat. Fold in the berries. If you are using frozen berries, defrost them first, drain the excess liquid, and then coat them in a light dusting of flour.

5. Use a standard 12-muffin muffin pan. Coat each muffin cup lightly with olive oil or grapeseed oil using a pastry brush, or with a little butter. Or use one of those convenient vegetable oil sprays. Distribute the muffin dough equally among the cups. Bake until muffins are golden brown, about 25 to 30 minutes. Test with a long toothpick (we use a thin bamboo skewer) to make sure the center of the muffins are done. Set on wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. Remove muffins from the tin and serve slightly warm.

Adapted from The Best Recipe.


Special thanks to Brandon who attempted to help with the blog's technical faults.

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Hello World.

My main role is to help you make improved choices where eating is concern and to document my progress on being a better cook + baker.