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 .

The Perfect Cheesecake !!!

I finally made Lizzy's cheesecake and boy , what a cheesecake it was . Creamy , tangy , sweet , delicious and above all very ...very easy to make . This was so easy to put together and so delicious that I am gonna make it again .( Btw , all her recipes are just so simple and perfect ) It baked beautifully and perfectly and it was so pretty to look  at so here goes ..................

You can get the recipe here
I halved the recipe and made it coz I just cannot trust myself around cheesecake . 

Quick and Easy Prawn and Egg Fried Rice

This is something I make when I am short on time , this is very quick to put together and tastes really fantastic . It only has quite a few ingredients , you can make it with leftover plain rice so here goes................

INGREDIENTS 

2 cups of cooked Basmati rice
2-3 spring onions chopped
3-4 garlic finely chopped
1 inch pc of ginger finely chopped
1 cup of chopped french beans
1 carrot chopped
10 prawns washed and deveined
2 eggs beaten
2 tbsp soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste
1 cube chicken stock
2 tbsp of oil

METHOD

In a saucepan or wok , heat a tbsp of oil and add the white part of the spring onions , garlic and ginger .
Add the prawns and cook it till done stirring it frequently .
Now add in the remaining vegetables and the chicken stock cube and stir fry it for about 5 min .
Add the cooked rice in batches along with the soy sauce , salt and pepper .
Toss everything together till it is all mixed well .
Now add in the beaten egg and the remaining 1 tbsp of oil and mix it all well .
By doing this the rice will be coated with egg .
Garnish with spring onion and serve hot .

NOTE

You can use frozen mixed vegetables . Also for more flavour cook the rice in chicken stock if you wish .

Avril Lavigne Cake

So many things to do in so little time  , really how fast is it going . When I looked at my last post , I realized more than 10 days have gone since I posted so here I am . I was busy making cakes for the past couple of weeks and the one I am posting today was made for my niece who is a huge Avril Lavigne fan . The cake is Chocolate caramel cake with whipped cream and cream cheese frosting . The cake is covered in marshmallow fondant so here goes ...................

Pinacolada Cupcakes

Whewww!!!! What a hectic week I had  , I  wanted to make Lizzy's cheesecake but did not get time to do it , I am still salivating over her cheesecake , hopefully this week I can try it out , but in the meanwhile , I was browsing through my food photos and found out that this recipe was not posted . these are soft , moist coconut cupcakes with bits of pineapple topped with a delicious coconut whipped cream and pineapple pieces coated with toasted coconut . These were an instant hit in my house so here goes...........................

INGREDIENTS

100 gms butter
1 cup caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 and 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 and 3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup of light coconut milk
1/4 cup of syrup from the canned pineapple
1/2 cup of chopped pineapple

for the frosting 

350 ml whipping cream
2 tbsp coconut milk powder
5 tbsp or more icing sugar
pineapple pieces dipped in toasted coconut for garnish ( optional )

METHOD

Cream the butter and sugar till fluffy .
Add the vanilla and the eggs and beat again .
Sift the dry ingredients together .
Mix the coconut milk and the syrup .
Now add in the wet and dry mixture alternately in the batter ending with the dry ingredient.
Fold in the chopped pineapple .
Bake in a preheated 180 c oven for about 20-25 min or till the tops are springy to the touch .
Now for the frosting , whip the cream , icing sugar sugar and coconut milk powder till stiff .
Pipe swirls onto the cooled cupcakes and top it with the pineapple pieces .

Pizza From My Garden

I am really proud of this dish not that this is something  fancy ,but because all the ingredients I have used here are from my small veggie garden . The place I moved to recently has a little space to do my vegetable gardening . I was not very fond of gardening , but now I am so excited to do it , every morning when I wake up the first thing I do is go and have a look at what has grown . Except for the cheese and olive oil everything on here is home made . I know you guys can't see me but I am beaming with pride ear to ear : D . so here goes....................

INGREDIENTS

for the base 

1 cup warm water
2 tbsp olive oil
1 and 1/2 cup unbleached white flour
1 and 1/2 cup of wholemeal flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp yeast

for the topping

1 cup of cherry tomatoes
a handful of mint, basil, rosemary, thyme and parsley
2 tbsp olive oil ( good quality )
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 cup feta cheese
1/4 cup parmesan cheese


METHOD

Mix all the ingredients for the dough and set aside in a greased bowl and cover with greased plastic wrap to rise for about 1 hour . Knock back the dough again and leave to rise for about 30 min. If you have a bread machine , then add the ingredients in the order given and set it on dough cycle.
Halve the cherry tomatoes and add it in a bowl .
To this add the oil , salt and pepper and the herbs and set it aside for half hour .
Divide the dough in half , you can save it in the fridge .
Use one half and roll the dough into any shape you want . Stretch it as thinly as possible , it will be much crisper.
Spread the tomato mixture evenly on top .
Crumble the feta cheese and sprinkle it all over .
Top with the parmesan cheese .
Bake in a preheated 180 c oven for about 15 min .

P.S : I forgot this , it tasted super !!!!!!!!!!!! ;P

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.