I LOVE cream puffs. 


Seriously.

Sit me down in front of a box of Costco cream puffs, and those suckers will be gone before you can say "don't eat my cream puffs". So yesterday while browsing Foodgawker for something delicious to inspire me while at the same time prevent me from having to go to the grocery store, I stumbled across Evil Shenanigans' chocolate glazed coconut cream puffs. Immediately, I was sold. No trip to the grocery store,  no spending money, and best of all -- I get to eat cream puffs. SCORE!

Ah the joys of living with an Asian household. I can always count on the fact that there will be at least one can of coconut milk in the pantry. 

Now, while I wish I could say that this journey was simple and foolproof, it wasn't. The above is a side by side comparison of my first batch of choux pastry and the second batch. As you can see, the first batch of my cream puffs...didn't exactly puff.  In fact, I was thinking  that if my second attempt decided not to puff either, I would just take the delicious custard filling that I already prepared and just make a coconut cream pie out of it. Both work for me =] 

So the flavor of these cream puffs is very natural and subtle. No fake overly coconutty taste given off by coconut extract. The toasted coconut in the filling and the use of coconut milk in the pastry itself adds a very sophisticated touch. It lets me know "hey, I have coconut in me" rather than yelling out "DO YOU TASTE THE COCONUT NOW?!". You get the picture. Anyways, I decided to photograph my cream puff journey. I hope the pictures help! 

Coconut Cream Puffs
adapted and slightly modified from Evil Shenanigans
Yield approx. 20 cream puffs

Filling:
3/4 cup sweet shredded coconut
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup coconut milk
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
small pinch of salt
1 egg
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp. unflavored gelatin
1 tsp. cold water
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 Tbsp. powdered sugar

Choux Pastry:
3/4 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup butter, cubed
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 cup all purpose flour
4 eggs, room temp


Instructions:

Heat a skillet to medium low heat. Toast the coconut, stirring constantly to prevent from scorching. Remove from heat.  

Preheat oven to 400F and line baking sheets with parchment paper. 

In a medium sauce pan combine coconut milk, water, butter, salt, vanilla and sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Add the flour in all at once & cook, while stirring, until mixture forms into a smooth ball. In the picture below I used brown sugar, because it was my first attempt and that recipe called for it. I modified the recipe to make sure my my puffs rose the second time around. Don't worry though, the steps look the same =]

Transfer dough to a stand mixer bowl and allow to cool for a few minutes. Using the paddle attachment, beat on low. Add one egg and beat until fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and repeat with the second egg. Beat until mostly incorporated, and finish beating with a rubber spatula. 

Transfer choux paste into a piping bag with a large tip. Pipe about 2 inches apart and bake for 18-24 minutes, or until the puffs are a deep golden brown. Remove from oven and pan. Cool to room temp. on cooling racks. DO NOT open the oven door while the choux paste is baking. It is very delicate and requires a high temperature to rise quickly. Opening during the oven door (especially during the first 3/4 of baking) will result in a flat pastry. 

While cream puffs are cooling, continue making the filling. In a small bowl, combine gelatin and water. Allow to stand for about 10 minutes, then microwave 6-10 seconds. Cool slightly. 
In a stand mixer bowl add cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Whip until the mixture starts to thicken. With mixture still running, whip in gelatin. Whip until you reach soft peaks. 

Fold whipped cream into coconut base in 3 additions. Cover (with plastic pressed against the surface) and chill for 1 hour. 

Assembly:
Personally, I found that these cream puffs were too soft to just pipe the custard into it. To assemble, gently cut off the top portion of the puff with a serrated knife, pipe custard into the bottom half, and cover with the top of the puff. I actually think this makes for a cuter, but much messier cream puff. Also, for appearance sake, I drizzled a little bit of chocolate ganache over it and sprinkled the remaining toasted coconut. Enjoy!

Most people don't know this about me, but I am a cookie whore. I love cookies, so much, that I when I make them, they just...disappear. Poof. Into thin air. 

andihavenoideawheretheywent....

I mention this because I have never posted a cookie recipe on here before. Never. ever. EVER. 

And its really weird. I LOVE cookies. and tobequitehonest, I'm not that into cake. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the baking, decorating, and tasting, but I'm actually not a big fan of the eating. I think my real reason for making lots of cakes is because they're really pretty. I can take pictures of cakes. Just swirl some delicious buttercream on them and they are photo ready. 

cookies on the other hand...not so much. Sure, they each have their unique pattern, their wrinkles, bumps and clumps. but cookies are so difficult to make look pretty. So today...no picture for you.

But these cookies are ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS. I know I have no photo evidence of these cookies, so I cannot show you how delicious they might be. I personally, would just trust the fact that when I brought them to Imports, everybody took seconds.

and thirds.

and fourths...

even fifths and sixths!

It's a good thing one batch yields 4 dozen cookies.

TO THE RECIPE!

 Today I was going through my blog, and thinking of past recipes that I've done, when I realized that almost all of my deserts are complicated. Whether it is complicated to make, involves many steps or ingredients, or even if its just sounds complicated, nothing I make is "simple". 

Heck, even my chocolate chip cookies have bacon in them.

or brown butter.

or peanut butter.

and coconut.

See what I mean? Every time I bake something, there is something that makes it just a little bit different from the rest. 2 weeks ago, I made chocolate cupcakes for Imports@CPP. When asked, I replied with just that--and then I was met with blank stares, dropped jaws and people asking me "thats it?". 

But it wasn't. 

It had a Butterscotch Swiss Meringue Buttercream. Drizzled with a butterscotch ganache. topped with chopped butterscotch chips. 

I have a problem....

However! Today I decided to make something simple. Something delicious. Something...chocolate.

And then I decorated it! See! I'm so proud of my frosting skills here. well, not the stars, but the fact that my frosting came out smooth (until I textured it), and even. 

I was even able to get the sides to be smooth. And once the frosting was somewhat crusted, I used a paper towel and textured it. I'm excited. I don't have to hide the sides of my cake with random things like coconut and almonds to cover up my horrible decorating skills. ...Not that I wouldn't use it if it made it taste soo much better...

Special Dark Chocolate Cake
adapted and slightly modified from MyBakingAddiction
Ingredients:
2 cups sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup Hersey's Special Dark unsweetend cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup strong black coffee (I used instant espresso)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Line 2 9-inch round baking pans or one 13x9x2 - inch baking pan. Grease and lightly flour. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or in a large bowl with an electric mixer, combine the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder. Mix on low until dry ingredients are thoroughly combined. Add eggs, buttermilk, coffee, oil and vanilla. Beat on medium speed for about two minutes; the batter will be thin. Pour batter evenly into prepared pans.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes for round pans, 35 to 40 minutes for rectangular pan or until wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.

Dark Chocolate Buttercream
from Savory Sweet Life

Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks or 1/2 pound), softened (but not melted!)
3 1/2 cups confectioners (powdered) sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder (I used Hersey's Special Dark)
1/2 teaspoon table salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract or 1 teaspoon almond extract4 tablespoons milk or heavy cream

Instructions

1. Cream butter for a few minutes in a mixer with the paddle attachment on medium speed. Turn off the mixer. Sift 3 cups powdered sugar and cocoa into the mixing bowl. Turn your mixer on the lowest speed (so the dry ingredients do not blow everywhere) until the sugar and cocoa are absorbed by the butter. Increase mixer speed to medium and add vanilla extract, salt, and milk/cream and beat for 3 minutes. If your frosting needs a more stiff consistency, add a little more sugar. If your frosting needs to be thinned out, add additional milk 1 tablespoon at a time.

I only made 3/4 of this because I only have 3/4 cup of butter left in my fridge. It was still enough to frost the entire cake with a thin layer of frosting. Also, after I frosted the cake, I let it "crust" a bit. Once it was dry to the touch (didn't stick to my finger when touched lightly) I smoothed out the frosting using an every day paper towel. Just lay it where the frosting need to be smoothed out a little, and rub it very lightly with your fingers. Gently peel away the paper towel and you will be left with a smooth, slightly textured frosting. Not to mention, it makes your frosting job look flawless =]

This cake was amazing. While it was a dark chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, it wasn't so chocolaty that it got sickening. In fact, this cake was moist, only slightly dense, and very much delicious. I really liked the added depth the almond extract gave the buttercream. While this is a chocolate cake, it isn't ridiculously sweet either. I would consider this a more grown up version of the chocolate cakes that kids love...which is good for me. And bad for me. It depends on how I feel like eating that day.

No wonder I'm gaining weight. 

Now go make some cake. Eat a big slice. And drink lots of milk. 

Ever since the announcement that my sister would be leaving California to start her new life in Maryland, I've been trying more and more to become more courageous; in my own little ways, I believe that I am succeeding. I started a 365 project two days before she left, and I did so for 2 reasons. One being that Alex recently lost his camera in an accident, and I realized that I haven't taken half the pictures I've wanted to. Accidents happen everyday, to people and to objects. The second, is that I wanted to how I would grow as a person, while the person who has been my role model since birth is gone.  Learning to live without things you've grown accustomed to having can be a struggle, and it can make you regret all the times you have taken times for granted. I know I will always have my sister, even if she is on the other side of the country; but just knowing that, even if wanted to, I wouldn't be able to see her on a whim. 

Although I haven't been posting much lately in my desserts section, my photography section is growing every single day. My 365 project requires me to take at least one picture meaningful to my day in some way and edit it. Starting this project also encourages me to get out and try new things, whether it be something like skydiving, or something as simple as a new lighting technique. Even small things can be daunting when you know the potential consequences.   

Today's recipe is dedicated to my one and only sister. She hates Boston - all of their weird messed up intersection systems, and all of the damn traffic. And I used to be scared of making Boston Cream Pie - what if the custard turned into some funky scrambled eggs?  My goal with this was to turn up with something Boston that we both could enjoy. I only wish she was here to actually taste it. 

In regards to this pie, I thought it was fantastic. The spongecake was delicious, the custard was to die for, but my only complaint is that I thought the chocolate overpowered the whole thing. Maybe its a Boston thing, but in my personal opinion, this would be much better with, at most, half of the glaze that the recipe calls for. I honestly didn't care for the chocolate much and would have preferred it without any at all, or maybe even just a slight drizzle for aesthetic purposes. To each their own, but you have been warned.

I have a friend. She has a problem.
                                        She can't eat my treats.
                                                                    She can't eat my sweets.
I have a friend. She has a problem.
                                       Thankfully, I found a solution.

Strawberries and Cream Cake
doubled and adapted to be gluten free from She Simmers
For the sponge cake:
6 large eggs, room temperature
a few splashes of lemon juice
1 cup sugar
1.5 cups Arrowhead Mills Gluten Free baking mix
3 Tbsp. Cornstarch
2 tsp. Baking Powder
6 Tbsp. Melted Butter
1/2 tsp. Salt

Preheat the oven to 350F. Line 2 9-in spring form pans with a piece of parchment, cut into a circle to fit the bottom of the pan. Grease the bottom of the pan very well, but do not grease the sides.

With a stand mixer, beat the egg whites on high speed until foamy. Once foamy, gradually add the sugar a couple tablespoons at a time until you get a stiff meringue. Do not over beat.
In a medium sized bowl, sift together the gluten free baking mix, baking powder, and cornstarch.
In a large bowl, whip together egg yolks, lemon juice and salt until foamy. Fold in meringue. Alternate sifting in the flour 1/4 cup at a time and pouring in the melted butter 1 Tbsp. at a time.

Divide the batter among the two spring form pans and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the top of the cake springs back when pressed with a finger.  To prevent the cake from sinking after baking, upon removal from the oven drop the cake pans from knee height. Loosen the cake from the pan around the edges with a butter knife, and let it cool completely inside of the pan.

For the Cream:
2 lbs. fresh strawberries
4 oz. mascarpone cheese, softened
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 Cup heavy whipping cream, well chilled
1/2 Cup sugar

Rinse the strawberries. Keep 6-9 strawberries whole, preferably around the same height for your pillars. Keep another 8 strawberries whole as decorations for the top. Hull the remaining strawberries and cut them into 1/4 inch pieces.
Whip the Cheese, sugar, and vanilla extract until creamy and lump-free. Slowly add the the heavy whipping cream and whip the mixture until it reaches the stiff peaks stage. Fold in diced strawberries. Chill.
For the pillars, remove the tops of the strawberries, and slice in half. Arrange strawberries around the edge of the  bottom layer cake, cut side pressed against the side of the pan. Fill the center with the strawberry cream filling. Top with the second layer of cake, pressing lightly to evenly distribute the cream.

For the topping:
3/4 Cup heavy whipping cream
3 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Combine cream, sugar, and vanilla in a mixing bowl and whip until stiff peaks are achieved. Pipe onto cake. Arrange whole strawberries around the cake.

                                                          Isn't it beautiful!
As this being my first time baking a gluten free dessert, I'm very proud to get this success. I'm not the only one who was glad to get this result. My friend, no longer has a problem, and now she can eat all the dessert she wants!

                                                            Happy birthday Sierra!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Yes yes, I know I am about 3 weeks late on that, but hey, its better than nothing. Now that all of this partying and holiday feasts are over, I can finally get back to my normal eating habits. NOT!

When January rolled in, I knew it was birthday time. And by birthdays, I mean  cake. And more cake = more blogging= happy viewers. 

Hmm.. I guess by the transitive property, More cake = happier viewers. who knew?

So I know that I have been leading you on too much about this cake already. I mean, c'mon, better than sex? Yeah right! Go on, scoff all you want, but until you've tried this cake you haven't felt what true euphoria feels like. I am here to bring you nirvana, afternoon delights, or whatever you wanna call it. Either way, its freakin' delish.

So without further a due, I proudly present, a cake, that is indeed, better than sex. 

This cake was a request by the birthday girl #1, Karissa. She  was searching for a cake that she wanted, and stumbled across a cake that was called "better than sex cake". She instantly messaged me saying, "I want an Anna rendition of this cake!". 

My rendition? There it is. 

This cake is made up of a Dark Drunken Devil's Food cake (try saying that 5 times fast), Condensed Milk, homemade Caramel,  Salted Caramel Buttercream, crushed Heath Bars, and whipped cream

Drooling yet?

Dark Drunken Devil's Food Cake
adapted from David Lebovitz  Yield:  9" layered cake
9 Tbsp. Hersey's Special Dark unsweetened cocoa powder
1½  cups minus 3 Tbsp.  all purpose flour
3 Tbsp.  Cornstarch
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon baking powder
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
1½ cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
½ Kahlua, or other coffee liquor  (If you'd like, you can just use strong coffee)
½ cup whole or low-fat milk 
3/4 cup milk chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350F . Line 2 9" baking pans with parchment paper, and lightly oil and flour the sides. 
2. Sift together cocoa powder, flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a measuring cup  mix the milk and liquor together, set aside.
3. In a (separate) mixing bowl, cream  together the sugar and the  butter until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing after each until well blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
4. Add half of the dry ingredients, mix well and then add the milk/liquor mixture and mix. Add the rest of the dry ingredients. I would recommend doing the final mixing with an electric mixer (if you weren't already) as the final batter tends to get really fluffy. Fold in chocolate chips.
5. Divide batter between two 9" pans.  Bake for approx. 20 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out with only a few crumbs. Because of the alcohol, the cakes take less time to bake as the alcohol evaporates pretty quickly. I would check to make sure the cake is done at the 15 minute mark.  Make sure not to overcook!

Whipped Cream
3/4 Cup heavy whipping cream
3 Tbsp. Granulated Sugar
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. Vanilla

Place all ingredients in a chilled mixing bowl. Using the whisk attachment, beat on medium - high speed until it reaches the stiff peak consistency. 

To me, this cake was a complete surprise. Knowing about all the sugar that I jammed into the cake, I was thinking this cake would be very rich, and overly sweet; but it wasn't! Yes it was decadent, yes it was very chocolaty, but I feel that even after all this sugar, the sweetness level was just right. It may have been the whipped cream that was taking away from the sweet factor. Or it could have been the whipped cream's smooth texture contrasted beautifully with the crunch of the heath bars. Either way, this cake was delicious, and I cant wait for my next excuse to make it again. 

Up next! 

Birthday number 2, Sierra!
Gluten-free Strawberry and Cream Cake

Holy Guacamole Batman! Two posts in one week!
You're welcome.

Yesterday was a very long day. After waking up early and going to a failure of a "job training" I decided to take a well deserved nap. So my morning went as follows:
7am: wake up
9 am: go to "work"
10 am: my "bosses" are still a no show...
11 am: my "boss" shows up, surprised that I am there for training
1130am: get sent home for lack of anything for me to do
12pm: zzzz....
2pm: zzz...

You get the picture. Needless to say, I did no accept the job. They wanted to try me out to see if I would be a good fit for the company, however, after their performance for the past couple weeks, their refusal to compromise on pay, and insistence that "entry level" workers deserve nothing but $10/hr has led me to believe that this company would not be a good fit for me. I left, slept off the frustration, and woke up to a happier day.

I got a hamster! After a few hours of driving around, and countless pet stores visited (thanks Alex <3), I finally found the perfect replacement for my previous hamster (r.i.p.). It was very exciting! Then, almost immediately after getting home, I get a call from one of my friends who wants to do a photo shoot. It was then, 10pm. And I had a cheesecake that still needed baking.

Can you imagine? By the time I actually started this cheesecake, it was 1:30am. Yet, after all the hours of baking and  cooling, sleeping and  slicing, this cheesecake could not be anymore perfect. So decadent, yet it melts in your mouth. The strawberries (even though not in season) were still juicy and sweet. They complemented the tang of the cheesecake wonderfully. I, personally, favor lighter, fluffier cheesecakes. Dense cheesecakes easily fill me up.

_This one was perfect.

Strawberry Cheesecake
For the crust:
9 Graham crackers, finely crushed
5 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
3 Tbsp. Granulated sugar

For the filling:
4 8oz packages cream cheese, softened
1 3/4 C. Granulated Sugar
3 eggs, room temp
1 tsp. Vanilla extract

For the topping:
1 Pkg. strawberries, rinsed, dried and  hulled
3 Tbsp. Granulated sugar (optional)
1/2 C. Heavy whipping cream
1 Tbsp. granulated sugar

Assembly
Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line the bottom of a 9-inch spring form pan with enough foil to extend up the pan.

In a small bowl, combine crust ingredients. Using your hands, press the crust into the bottom and up the sides of the spring form pan. Bake for 8 minutes. Remove from oven and cool slightly. Reduce the oven's temperature to 350 degrees. Fill a cake pan with boiling water and place on the bottom rack of the oven.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the Cream cheese on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the sugar, and vanilla. Beat until well blended. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until incorporated and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Pour into the prepared crust, and bake for approx 40-50 minutes, or until the sides are set and the center is still a little bit wiggly. Remove from oven, and cool in the pan to room temperature. Once cooled, place the pan in the refrigerator and allow cake to chill for at least 4 hours or overnight.

How you place the topping on your cake is solely up to you. Some people just pile the strawberries on, while others like to be a bit more creative. I will be describing  way I decorated this cake.

Once the cake  has chilled, run the back of the knife around the edges to release the cake from the pan (do not remove yet).
Slice enough of the strawberries in half to circle the perimeter of the cake. Thinly slice the remaining strawberries, place in a small bowl and toss in 2-3 Tbsp. of sugar. Let sit for 15-30 minutes to allow the juices to be drawn from the berries.
Meanwhile, place whipping cream and sugar into a mixing bowl. Whip on medium high speed until the whipped cream forms stiff peaks.
Pile the remaining strawberries in the center of the cheesecake. Pipe whipped cream surrounding the sliced strawberries, as well as a dollop in the center of the cake. Top with a whole strawberry.

_Slice. Eat. Enjoy.

Happy Holidays!

I am a horrible blogger. 

why?  because I always say that I'm going to post more often, but I never really do.And for that, I apologize. I wish I could offer up some sort of elaborate explanation for why I haven't been posting, but there is none. The blunt and honest truth is that I've just been too freaking lazy to turn on my computer and type something. Well, some sort of truth is that I have been busy making lots and lots of Christmas truffles for friends and family members. Being that I am almost completely broke now, I decided to spend a set amount and just give everybody different kinds of chocolates. Sadly, I no longer have the chocolates to photograph for you, but I can tell you one thing. I am so sick of chocolate.....

Ridiculously sick of it. As in, if I even smell melting chocolate now, I will walk away with such intensity that I might knock some poor lady over on the street. But its ok! My food aversions don't last that long. Just yesterday I had chocolate in my ice cream =P. 

If requested, I can post the recipes for those chocolates, but there will be a lack of pictures. Sad...they came out so pretty looking too after they were all decorated, boxed, and ribboned. I had about 5 different flavors: Bailey's truffles, chocolate chip cookie dough, honey nutella, peanut butter, peppermint, oreo. Ok, so maybe there were 6...I cant pre-count. So yes, if you would like the recipe to any of those truffles, just leave a comment and I will certainly get back to you....eventually...

However! these truffles are not the star of the show today. A Christmas Snowball...It seemed like a great idea for a cake to me. I had this...Vision...I guess you can say. I wanted to create a beautiful cake for an upcoming Christmas party, but I am a horrible horrible cake decorator. So in my vision, I came up with ways to hide the fact that I cannot decorate a cake. How to hide the nasty bottom of the cake where the frosting isn't even, how to hide crumbs in my top layer of frosting, how to pretend that the cakes are perfectly leveled...you know, things like that. In all the youtube videos of "how to frost a cake" they make it look so simple! And yet every time i try, I fail.But, alas, I have come up with a way to solve my problems! I will HIDE all of my mistakes! So simple, yet so artsy looking, that even I thought my cake looked pretty. 

Wanna see? =]

Mind = blown. RIGHT?! I  frosted the cake as well as I could, then just threw coconut on the sides to hide all of my mistakes/where you can see crumbs/the cake, and took whatever I had left of my dipping chocolate for the truffles, turned it into a ganache, and POW! a cake. =] I wish I had a better picture, but I was in a rush. dont hate. 

In my vision however, I was going to top the cake with chocolate dipped strawberries, but right now, strawberries are running for 6 bucks a box. no thank you. Maybe if my wallet wasn't so empty I would consider it. and now...for the recipe!

Christmas Snowball Cake
1 Batch Red Velvet Cake, baked into 2 9-inch pans, cooled
1 Batch White Chocolate Cream Cheese frosting (below)
1/2 Cup heavy cream
1 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter
approx. 4 oz dark chocolate, cut into small chunks
Coconut flakes

White Chocolate Cream Cheese frosting
1 8oz. package cream cheese, softened
3c. powdered sugar
4 oz. white chocolate
1 tsp. vanilla
2Tbsp. heavy whipping cream

1. Melt white chocolate in 20 second intervals. with a wooden or plastic spoon, stir white chocolate after every  interval to smooth.  Once smooth, allow to cool to room temperature. (Metal spoons or forks might be too cold in relation to the chocolate, and will temperature shock the chocolate and you'll end up with a bunch of small hard pieces of white chocolate.)
2. Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add in vanilla and white chocolate and whipping cream. Beat at medium-high speed until well combined. Add powdered sugar 1 C. at a time until desired taste/consistency is reached.

Assembly

1. Place dark chocolate in a heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan, combine 1/2 c. heavy cream and unsalted butter. Heat until scalded but not boiling. Once heated, pour over dark chocolate. Let sit for a couple minutes, then stir till smooth.
2. On one layer of the cake, spread most of the dark chocolate ganache, reserving a small amount for drizzle at the top of the cake. Place in the refrigerator to cool and set. 
3. Once ganache is set, remove cake from the refrigerator, and spread a third of the Frosting on top of the ganache. Top with remaining layer of the cake. Crumb  coat the cake place in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes, or until hardened. 
4. Remove cake from refrigerator, and use the remainder of the frosting to frost the cake. While still somewhat wet, press coconut to the sides of the cake. Drizzle the top with the remaining ganache. Top with chocolate covered strawberries if desired. 

I was very proud of this cake. It was was one of my first full cakes that I deemed presentable. The taste, was obviously amazing. The subtle taste of the white chocolate in the the frosting added a whole layer of depth to the classic red velvet cake. The chocolate ganache emphasized the soft chocolate flavor of the red velvet, and the coconut added a nice holiday texture. 

Do you require testimonials of why you should try this cake?

friend one via text: "holy balls this cake is effing amazing!"
friend two via text: "My mom LOVED the cake, and so did I. Very yummy =]"
mommy: "YOU made this cake? its so pretty. and its so moist but not so sweet, which is good"
daddy: "yum." 

TRY IT. you wont regret it. 

kthxbye

Bacon.
Who doesn't like bacon?
One day, I will find someone that claims that they don't like bacon. I'm going to change their lives. They've probably had bacon for breakfast. They've probably had it as part of their lunch. They've probably have tried bacon wrapped anything. Me? I'm going to change their lives with bacon -- in dessert.

A few weeks ago, I let slip to a few guys at Imports@CPP that I knew how to incorporate bacon into a dessert. They stood there, dumbfounded, in awe, and amazement as I made this ridiculous claim. None of them believed me, so they ever so "humbly" requested that I make some for them.

"Is that bacon on top of that cupcake?"
Why, yes! Yes it is.

I introduce you to my breakfast cupcake. Inspired by the breakfast cupcake at My Delight Cupcakery, I went on a quest to find if I could find similar recipes online somewhere to sooth my outrageous craving for bacon. This is my second attempt at making these cupcakes, and it was a valiant success. I wasn't able to find the recipe that I used before, so I kind of looked up some recipes and winged it using bits and pieces from a bunch of them.

Are you ready to get your mind blown!?

Maple Bacon Cupcakes
2.5 cups flour
1/2 cup minus 1 Tbsp butter (room temp)
2 eggs
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk (I used 1 tsp lemon juice +1/2 c milk and set it out for a few minutes)
3/4 cup pancake syrup (I would have used maple, if I had any)
10 slices bacon, cooked
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 Tbsp maple extract (only because I didn't use maple syrup)
1 Tbsp bacon fat , solidified (reserved from cooking the bacon)

Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium-low heat until done (or crunchy). Set aside until cool.  Reserved 1 T bacon grease. Chop/crumble cooked bacon. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake pans with liners.

In a medium sized bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
In a larger bowl, cream together the butter, bacon fat, and sugar, until light and fluffy. Add in eggs, one at a time, blending well after each addition. Add the syrup, vanilla, and maple extract (if using). Beat to combine.

Add the 1/3 of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, and beat until just incorporated. Add 1/2 buttermilk, beat until just incorporated. Repeat this process until you add the last of the flour mixture. Be sure not to over beat, or this will result in a denser cupcake. The goal is to get the flour mixture to be barely visible. Gently fold in the bacon crumbles.

Fill the cupcake liners until 2/3 full, and bake for approx 18-22 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for a couple minutes before moving to cooling racks to cool completely.

Maple Buttercream
1 1/3 c butter
2 1/4 c powdered sugar
3 t maple extract
4 T milk
6 strips bacon, cooked then crumbled, for garnish

Place butter, powdered sugar, maple extract, and milk in a large bowl. Beat until smooth, light, and creamy (about 5 minutes). Frost cooled cupcakes, then garnish with bacon crumbles.Close your eyes, take a bite, and feel extacy as you enter bacon heaven.

Everybody was amazed by these cupcakes. You will be too. They really do taste like breakfast in a cupcake!


ps. Aren't you proud of me? I finally have exact measurements for my frostings =]