Lemon Yoghurt Cake with Lemon Basil Syrup

Every time  a new year begins , I always wonder whether that year will be happy or crappy .Well so far, its been a teeny bit of happy and a bucket load of crappy and at the rate it's going it seems the bucket is going to overflow . The only way I find my worries melting is by baking cakes , which I haven't done lately .So to make up for my happy , I decided to make one .This is a simple lemon yoghurt cake with lemon basil syrup .It's a very moist and zest cake and I hope you guys like it , so here goes..............

INGREDIENTS

150 gms butter room temp
1 and 1/4 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 and 1/2 cup flour
1 and 3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup yoghurt
1/4 cup milk
zest and juice of a lemon

for the syrup 

1 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
zest and juice of a lemon
a handful of basil chopped

METHOD

Cream the butter and sugar till pale and fluffy .
Add the eggs and vanilla and beat well .
Sift the dry ingredients together .
Mix the yoghurt and milk .
Now add the wet and dry ingredients to the batter ending with the dry .
Stir in the zest and juice of a lemon .
Grease and flour a bundt pan and add the batter in it .
Bake in a prehated 180 c oven for about 30-35 min .
For the syrup add all the ingrdients except for the basil in a saucepan and bring it to boil .
turn off the heat and add the basil .
Cool the cake and pour syurp over it and garnish with extra basil leaves .
Serve and enjoy .

Strawberries and Cream Cupcake

 Why can't 'fat' be the new 'fit' , why can't 'shape' zero be the new 'size' zero , why god .....why ......These are the rantings of a mad fat woman , that is ME . I have a wedding to get to in a couple of months and need to lose a few pounds ,well more actually but I can settle for a few now ( if that is possible) . So for the time being  I thought of sealing my lips shut from all the gorgeous treats out there of my fellow bloggers ( keeping my fingers crossed ) and also I apologize for not visiting and commenting on your blogs coz I am trying to lose some fat , which seems to have fallen in love with me , fat and I are BFF's , we are that close ;p . This might be my last post for sometime on sweet treats . These are moist , soft , full of strawberry flavour cupcakes topped with sweet whipping cream and fresh strawberries ( OMG !!! that was quite hard ) . Here goes enjoy ................

INGREDIENTS

100 gms butter softened
1 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
1 cup frozen strawberries thawed and mashed through a sieve
1/2 cup milk approx
1 and 1/2 cup all- purpose flour
1 and 3/4 tsp baking powder
A pinch of salt

for the frosting

250 ml whipping cream
2-3 tbsp or more if you like icing sugar

fresh strawberries for topping

METHOD

Cream the butter and sugar till pale and fluffy .
Add the eggs and the vanilla essence and beat well .
Meanwhile mix all the dry ingredients together .
When you mash the strawberries through the sieve , you get 1/2 cup of strawberry puree approx and then add in enough milk to make it one cup .
Now add the dry and wet ingredients alternately ending with the dry ingredients .
Grease or line a 12 hole muffin pan .
Bake in a preheated 180 c oven for about 20-25 min .
Cool on a wire rack before frosting .
Whip the cream with the icing sugar till stiff peaks form .
Swirl onto cupcakes and top it with fresh strawberries and enjoy .

Chocolate and Caramel Cupcakes with Whipped Chocolate Ganache Frosting

Whewww!!!!!! That is one long name for a little thing and I am tired from typing it ;) . These cupcakes are soft , moist , chocolatey , caramely ...... I could go on and on and on describing it coz it's just that good and the frosting is just yummy . It's just chocolate ganache whipped up to give a nice fluffy smooth frosting , it's just too good so here goes..................

INGREDIENTS

1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup light brown sugar
1 and 3/4 baking powder
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup low-fat milk
1/3 cup canola oil or any flavorless vegetable oil
1 tbsp vanilla essence
1 tbsp vinegar
1/2 cup nestle caramel treat or caramel topping

for the frosting

200 gms dark chocolate chopped
1 cup whipping cream

METHOD

Combine all the dry ingredients in a large bowl .
Mix all the wet ingredients together except for the caramel topping .
Now add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix it well till you get a smooth mixture .
Now fold in  the caramel topping into the batter . Don't over mix it .
Grease or line the cupcake tin.
Bake in a preheated 180 c oven for about 15-20 min or till the tops are springy to the touch .
Meanwhile make the ganache by heating the whipping cream in the microwave for 1 min .
Add the chopped chocolate in the hot cream and stir it till you get a smooth mixture.
Now keep it aside to cool.
When the ganache is cooled whip it using a beater till stiff .
Pipe the whipped ganache onto the cooled cupcakes and enjoy :D.

Lemon Cupcakes with Raspberry Fool Filling

Thank you everyone for your kind wishes. Remember my last post where I said I was taking a break for a couple of days from all the unpacking , well I am still on it . Never got back to unpacking , just dumped everything in the garage and waiting for some magic where the cartons will unpack by itself ( still crossing my fingers and hoping for it ).
While I am waiting for a genie to grant my wish , I thought I would sneak in a post fit for this month  .Sweet and moist lemony cupcakes with a tangy and tart raspberry fool filling , so here goes..............

INGREDIENTS

1 recipe lemon cupcakes

for the filling

3/4 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
1/4 cup or more icing sugar
1 cup liquid whipping cream
2 tbsp icing sugar for sprinkling

METHOD

Make the lemon cupcakes according to the recipe given  and leave it to cool .
Using a fondant heart cutter , cut out in the middle .
Now for the filling , mash the raspberries and icing sugar with a fork .
Whip the cream till stiff .
Fold in the mashed raspberries .
Fill the cupcakes with the raspberry cream and sprinkle with icing sugar and enjoy.

Coffee Milk Cupcakes with Caramel Whipped Cream

While I was going through my food photos , I came across this one and realized that I hadn't put this one up . These cupcakes have a subtle coffee flavour and the frosting is simply the best and very easy too so here goes......

INGREDIENTS

100 gms butter (room temp)
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 and 3/4 tsp baking powder
1 and 1/2 tsp instant coffee powder
1 cup milk

for the frosting 

1 cup whipping cream
3-4  tbsp nestle caramel treat

METHOD

Cream butter and sugar till pale and fluffy .
Add the eggs and vanilla and beat well .
Sift all the dry ingredients together .
Now add the dry ingredients and milk alternately ending with the dry ingredient .
Grease and line the cupcake tin and fill it 3/4th.
Bake in a preheated 180 c oven for about 20-25 min or till done .
Whip the cream till stiff and fold in the caramel treat .
Now top the cooled cupcakes the with frosting and  garnish with chocolate flakes or sprinkles if you like .

Vanilla and Chocolate Layer Cake with Caramel and Mousse Filling

 Eid Mubarak to everyone !!!!!  What a fun and hectic week it was with all family and friends getting together , truly it was a week to remember .The best part was the food and that too lots and lots of it and everyting truly delicious .As usual I was in charge of the dessert and decided to go all out for it and I am not one to brag ;) ,  but the cake turned out superb and everyone loved it .I made a chocolate and vanilla layered cake with white chocolate and dark chocolate mousse filling and caramel so now you know why everyone loved it . It was just superb and above all very easy to make so here goes........

INGREDIENTS

1 recipe of Chocolate cake
1 recipe of Vanilla cake

for the dark chocolate mousse filling 

150 gm dark chocolate chopped
1 cup whipping cream

for the white chocolate mousse 

150 white chocolate chopped
1 cup whipping cream

1 tin nestle caramel treat

for the frosting

1/2 cup water
2 tbsp brown sugar
150 gms butter softened
11 oz dark chocolate chopped

METHOD

Make the cakes in two 8 inch sandwich tins according to the recipe .
To make the mousse filling , melt the chocolate in a microwave or double boiler till smooth .
Whip the cream till stiff and fold in the melted chocolate .
To make the frosting , In a saucepan add the water,  sugar and  butter and heat it till it melts .
Now turn off the heat and add the chopped chocolate and stir it till smooth .
It takes a while to set so make it first .
To assemble the cake cut each cake in half horizontally .
Place a layer of vanilla cake , spread 2 tbsp of caramel treat on it .
Now add 3 tbsp of  the dark chocolate mousse filling on top.
Place a layer of chocolate cake on top and then add the caramel treat again if you like and top it with the white chocolate mousse filling .
Now repeat the process till you run out of cakes : ) .
Now frost the entire cake with chocolate frosting and leave it to till .
Garnish the top with crushed peanuts if you like .
Serve and enjoy .

Caramel , Apple and Pecan Nut Cake

This recipe came about when I was craving for something sweet  and  had only an apple and not even a handful of pecan nuts  in my house so decided to make do with them in the unhealthiest way possible ; p , if I hadn't made something then the apple would have been thrown out the next day and didn't want to do that . Surprisingly the cake came out really good and it was also simple to make , so here goes.........

INGREDIENTS

3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp water
1 apple
1/2 cup toasted pecan nuts chopped
50 gms butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla essence
3/4 cup all-purpose-flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp cinnamon powder
a pinch of salt
1/2 cup milk

METHOD

In a saucepan , add the sugar and the water , mix it up and put on low heat till it just starts to turn burgundy .
Turn off the heat and pour the caramel in a 6 inch baking tin , spread it in the tin evenly .
Add the toasted pecans on it and set aside .
Cream the butter and sugar till pale .
Add the egg and vanilla and beat again .
Sift all the dry ingredients together and add it to the creamed butter alternating with the milk .
Slice the apples very thinly and arrange on top of the toasted pecans .
Pour the batter over it and bake in a preheated 180 c oven for about 20-25 min or till done .
Cool it in the tin for a while so that the apple topping sets and it will easily come out .
This cake best tastes while it is warm .

Red Velvet Cake and Trifle

Now this is the most favourite cake in my household now .I used to wonder what all the fuss was about the red velvet , sure it is the prettiest looking cake and has a rather sexy name but didn't still think it was so great that is until I tasted the frosting and Oh My !!! what a frosting that is , I got the recipe from Joy of Baking , it is the yummiest frosting I have ever tasted . I tried a few different recipes of  red velvet cake a couple of times but found it a bit dry to my liking so I tweaked the recipe a bit to make it more moist , I am not bragging here ;p ,but this cake is so moist and light , it just melts in your mouth , even if it is just out of the fridge it is still moist and the frosting is simply the best so here goes..........

INGREDIENTS

100 gms butter softened
1/2 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup caster sugar
1 tbsp vanilla essence
2 eggs
2 cups of all-purpose-flour
1/4 salt
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 yoghurt
1/2 cup milk
1 tbsp vinegar
2 tbsp liquid red food colour

for the frosting

200 gms cream cheese
250 mascarapone cheese
3/4 cup icing sugar
1 cup liquid whipping cream

METHOD

Cream the butter and sugars till pale and fluffy
Beat in the vanilla and eggs till mixed well.
Meanwhile sift the dry ingredients together
Mix all the wet ingredients together
Now add the dry ingredients in batches to creamed butter alternating with the wet ingredients.
Grease two 8 " inch sandwich tins and pour the batter in it .
Bake in a preheated 180 c oven for about 25-30 min or till a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean .
To make the frosting , in a large bowl add the two cheese and beat it till it softens .
Add the icing sugar to it and beat it again till mixed .
Now add the whipping cream slowly and beat it till stiff  .
To assemble the cake , cut each cake half .
Place a layer on the serving plate and add the frosting , add the next layer and repeat .
Frost the cake all over and chill for at least 2 hours .
Now serve and enjoy :D .

Now , I had made this in a small tin , so I had one more layer leftover and a little frosting too , so decided to make a trifle out of it and what do you know , it was really delish , with a layer of the cake , strawberry sauce (strawberries and icing sugar blended together) and fresh strawberries topped with the heavenly frosting . It was really pretty to look at ( I think strawberries make everything look good ) and heavenly to taste .

Zesty Passion Fruit and Blueberry Cake

This Cake got created coz I had all these fruits about to go bad in my house and wanted to use them and not throw them , I just hate throwing away food . Surprisingly , this cake turned out really great , the combination of flavours worked really well and thankfully I got a good recipe to post.The tartness of the passion fruit and orange juice works really well with the sweet blueberries plus the aroma of this cake is just too good ,  so here goes......

INGREDIENTS

100 gms butter room temp
1 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence
Zest and juice of 2 oranges
Zest of 1 lemon
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
Pulp of 1 passion fruit
1 cup of fresh or frozen blueberries

METHOD

Cream the butter and sugar till pale and fluff
Add the eggs one at a time ,then the vanilla and beat it well.
Sift the flour and baking powder together and add it in the butter mixture alternating between the orange juice . Stir in the zests , passion fruit pulp and the blueberries .
Grease and line a loaf tin and bake in a preheated 180 c oven for 1 hr or till a toothpick inserted in the middle  comes out clean .
Cool on a wire rack and enjoy .

Ferrerro Raffaello Cake and an Anniversary

I know I said I wouldn't be posting as much  coz I am on my vacation ( thank you for all the wishes you guys  ) but how could I not post today coz today is the day I started my blog a year ago and that was the best thing I had done . I got to post about stuff that I love so much and above all that I made lots of new and wonderful friends from all over the globe . I have to thank each one of you who visited my blog and left comments here , I just love reading them and it really encourages me to do more so a big Thank you to all of you again .
For today's post I had to make a cake and this cake is based on my favorite chocolate and I think all of you know this chocolate I am talking about , it's called Ferrero Raffaello ,the white counterpart of the famous Ferrero rocher . I just love the coconutty taste of this one and I wanted to incorporate this flavor into my cake and I am happy to let you know the results were quite good .

The cake is light and moist with a hint of the coconut flavour and the sweetness of the white chocolate ganache balances well with the light cream frosting and  the crunch from the toasted coconut and almonds and I hope you guys like it :) .

INGREDIENTS

100 gms butter room temp
1 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 and 3/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tsp almond essence
1 cup light coconut milk or 3 tsp coconut milk powder dissolved in 1 cup water

for the white chocolate ganache 

225 gms white chocolate
1 cup cream

for the frosting

1 cup liquid whipping cream
2 tbsp icing sugar

for the topping

3/4 cup toasted dessicated coconut
3/4 cup toasted almond flakes


METHOD

Cream the butter and sugar till pale and fluffy .
Add the eggs and beat well.
Add the vanilla and almond essence
Mix the flour and the baking powder well and beat it into the mixture alternating between the coconut milk .
Grease and line two 9 inch sandwich tins and pour the batter in it .
Bake in a preheated 180 c oven for about 15-20 min.
To make the ganache , heat the cream and add in the chopped chocolate and stir it till you get a smooth mixture.
Whip the cream and sugar till stiff .
To assemble the cake , add the white chocolate ganache on top of the cake and cover it with another layer of cake . Add a little more of the ganache on top of the cake and leave it to cool till the ganache is set .
Now frost the entire cake with the whipped cream  and top it with the toasted coconut and almonds.
Chill and enjoy .

Tiramisu Cupcakes

Tiramisu is my most favorite dessert , I just love Tiramisu , I feel it is one decadent , melt-in-your-mouth delicacy and this cupcake is based on just that . Here the cupcakes are soaked in strong black coffee and topped of with the mascarapone and whipping cream mix and it tastes absolutely delicious. Now , this is one of my favourite cupcake flavours and it is even better to make small mini muffins , yummmmmm bite sized delicacies , so here goes.........

INGREDIENTS

1 Vanilla Cupcakes recipe
1 cup strong black cofee sweetened according to taste
1 cup whipping cream
150 ml masacarapone cheese
3-4 tbsp powdered sugar
cocoa powder for dusting

METHOD

Pour 2-3 tbsp of coffee on the prepared cupcakes and chill them .
Whip the cream till stiff
Mix the mascarapone cheese and sugar together.
Fold the whipped cream into the cheese.
Pipe the cream mix into swirls  onto the cupcakes and dust the tops with cocoa powder or chocolate shavings.
Chill them well before serving.

Vanilla Cupcakes

Happy new year everyone , thought I would start off the new year with something simple as vanilla cupcakes. I really hate those really dense heavy cakes and have been searching and trying for a nice moist fluffy vanilla cake and this recipe really is all that . It is moist , fluffy and not overly sweet and above all easy to make so here goes.....

INGREDIENTS

100 gms unsalted butter room temp

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

1and 3/4 tsp baking powder

1 and 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup milk

METHOD

Beat the butter and sugar till light and fluffy

Add in the vanilla essence and the eggs .

Mix the dry ingredients together and add it in the mix

Lastly add in the milk .

Bake in a preheated  180 c oven for 15- 20 min.

NOTE

Beat the butter and sugar really well , then only you will get a nice fluffy cake . This recipe yeilds about 10 large cupcakes or two 8 inch sandwich cake tins . For the cupcakes bake it about 15-20 min . and for the cakes about 25 - 40 min.

No Bake Cheesecake

I stumbled upon this recipe a while ago and have been making it ever since and everytime it turns out perfect . it is a wonderful cheesecake very light and airy in texture and above all very easy to make . It is a big hit with my family so here goes ..............

• 450 gm cream cheese (room temperature)
• 200 ml double cream
• 110 gm caster sugar
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp vannilla essence
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 10 digestive biscuits
• fresh blueberries
• icing sugar for dusting

1. Crush the digestives into fine crumbs (use a food processor )
2. Heat the butter ina large pan on low flame . Add the digestives and stir continuously until the crubs have absorbed the butter and you can a smell a nice roasted aroma .
3. Remove from the heat and press down into a 10" or 9" inch loose base cake tin (spring form pan).Smooth over by using the base of a glass . Put in the freezer to cool .
4. In a clean dry bowl whip the double cream until it forms soft peaks . Dont over whip ( it is all in the whipping ).
5. In another bowl gently soften the cream cheese using a wooden spoon and add the lemon juice , vanilla and sugar .
6. Next fold in the double cream . mix well .
7. Pour the filling into the prepared cake tin . Arrange th blueberries on top and sprinkle with the icing sugar .
8. Allow to set in the fridge for at least 2 hours . Serve with ice ceam, creme fraiche or additional fresh berries .

If you don't have fresh blueberries you can also top it with a chunky blueberry jam ,that works very well too.