Chocolate Banana Cake For Valentine

Yesterday I was so in de mood for valentine.. eventhough it's still a month to go.. but who cares, I wanted to make and decorate a cake.

I got the recipe for the chocolate banana cake from Joy Of Baking, then I decorated it in the style of retro with plastic icing or sometimes called as rolled fondant.. it looks soooo cool!!

I only used 1/2 of the recipe for a 20 cm diameter cake, then I cut the cake in the shape of a heart.

For the filling, I changed with white chocolate ganache using the same recipe.. but too bad I didn't wait long enough until the ganache cooling down, the filling was still melting and absorbed by the cake.. well it wasn't really succeed.

I just copied the original recipe... to save my time for typing it back.


Chocolate Banana Cake

2 cups (400 grams) granulated white sugar (I would reduce the sugar since the banana is really ripe, sweet & soft)

1 3/4 cups (245 grams) all-purpose flour

3/4 cup (75 grams) cocoa powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 2 medium sized bananas)

1 cup (240 ml) warm water

1/2 cup (120 ml) milk

1/2 cup (120 ml) safflower or canola oil

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Chocolate Ganache Frosting:

8 ounces (227 grams) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces

3/4 cup (180 ml) heavy whipping cream

1 tablespoon (14 gram) unsalted butter

Directions:
Chocolate Banana Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place rack in the center of the oven. Butter, or spray with a non stick vegetable spray, a 9 x 13 inch (23 x 33 cm) pan. Set aside.

In a large bowl whisk together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In another large bowl, whisk together the eggs, mashed bananas, water, milk, oil, and vanilla extract. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir, or whisk, until combined. You will notice that the batter is quite thin. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. When completely cooled, frost with the Ganache.

Ganache: Place the chopped chocolate in a medium sized stainless steel, or heatproof bowl. Set aside. Heat the cream and butter in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil. Immediately pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Stir until smooth. When Ganache has completely cooled, beat until soft and fluffy. Then spread the frosting on top of the cake. Garnish as you like.

Chocolate Tart With Mixed Berries

My daughter 'Naomi' is four years on February 11. It feels like yesterday when she was still a tiny and fragile baby. It's unbelievable how she grows and what she can do lately. Everything goes forward fastly.. too fast. It makes me in tears sometimes because suddenly I feel old.

Anyway, we didn't celebrate her b'day because her teacher and friends at school already planned things. I wasn't allowed either to bring cakes or any treats for her class, that's why especially for her I baked this tart, something to stand the candles which she could blow out and made a wish...:o) and I think her wishes came through. She always wanted to have 'pink' bike like other kids... and we did buy it for her as her present. You should have seen her face, sooooo happy and proud... she said 'I love you' to us many times which made us happy too.

Back to the tart, it looks quite rich, but actually it's very light. The cake is without butter, the sugar is not really overwhelming, the cream (if you like) can be replaced with light cream and the filling with frozen mixed berries. Since it's still winter here, difficult to find fresh berries and if you find them, the price is very high. So the choice was very quick to pick frozen berries instead of the fresh one.

Ingredients:
90 gr flour
1 teasp baking powder
2 tablesps cacao powder
4 eggs (divide)
100 gr sugar

Directions:
1. Sift the flour, baking powder and cacao together.
2. Wisk the egg white and gradually add the sugar.
3. Add the egg yolks in and wisk for about 20 seconds.
4. Add with mixed flour and blend well.
5. Bake in pre-heated oven with temperature 180°C and for about 25 minutes.
6. After done, remove the cake from the oven, but leave it in the tin for 5 minutes.
7. Afther 5 minutes, divide the cake into two parts then leave it to cool.

Rhum syrup:
1 tablespoon hot water
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoon rhum

Direction:
Dissolve the sugar in the hot water, add the rhum in then mix well then sprinkle over the cake.

Filling & Icing:
350 dl whipping cream
sugar as needed
mix berries
chocolate sprinkles

Directions:
1. Wisk the cream and add gradually with sugar until thickens and foamier. Divide into two portions.
2. Mix the mixed berries in one portion whipped cream, then fill in the cake.
3. Spread the other whipped cream on top and side of the cake. Sprinkle with chocolate sprinkles.

Black Forest For My Rendo

2nd September is my son's "Rendo" birthday. He becomes 12 years old. He's not a little boy anymore, he's becoming a teenager. The ages that most people say as every parents's nightmares. To be honest actually I'm quite excited with this lifetime. I'm curious and excited to experience the moments when my "little" boy is having his first pimples, first love, first broken-heart..("hopefully not")... everything with his first life experiences... and this makes me almost in tears. In my heart I just hope he'll be fine passing through teenager life and I hope with all my heart in the future he'll become a good, care and wise person.

Special for his birthday I baked his favorite tart, black forest. I didn't get a chance to take the picture of the whole cake so here it is a piece of my black forest tart.

The recipe will be added soon...

Charlotte aux fraises

This is one of family's favorites... charlotte aux fraises. The strawberries, white chocolate, vanilla pudding and sponge fingers combine all the tastes that make us drool. Absolutely perfect for summer time. The recipe here is adapted from Christelle Le Ru with her book Simply Irresistible French Desserts.

Ingredients:
250 gr strawberries
30 sponge fingers
130 gr white chocolate
vanilla pudding:
4 egg yolks
1 egg
100 gr white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
50 gr sifted flour
500 ml milk
100 ml fresh creamDirections:
1. Place the ring of an 18 cm loose-based roung baking tin on a serving dish.
2. Cut 1 cm off one end of the sponge fingers and place them cut-end down to line the inside of the tin.
3. Crush the left-over pieces and remaining sponge fingers and press inside the ring using your fingers or the bottom of a glass.
4. Melt white chocolate over the heat of hot water and spread over the sponge fingers. Leave to cool.
5. When set, place strawberries over the chocolate.
6. Cover with vanilla pudding and decorate with the reserved strawberries. Grate remaining white chocolate and scatter over the top of the charlotte. Refrigerate for at least four hours.

Vanilla pudding:
1. Mix egg yolks, egg and white sugar.
2. Add vanilla essence and stir in sifted flour.
3. Bring milk and fresh cream to the boil in a saucepan, pour over the egg mixture while mixing
and return to the pan. Cook over low heat, mixing continuously, for 10 minutes or until thick.

Devil's Food Cupcakes

I'm not surprised these cupcakes got that special name. They are really evils. The texture of the cake is incredible moist and the combination with the chocolate ganache is just heaven. These cupcakes are going to be my favorite and I certainly will make these again.

I made these cupcakes for my friend. She's just moved out and celebrating her new house today. But no worry, I made more than enough, so I would still be possible enjoying these cupcakes tomorrow by myself...hhmmmm..

Ingredients:
½ cup boiling water
6 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ cup milk
½ tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup flour
½ + 1/8 tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt

½ cup butter, softened
10 Tbsp. brown sugar
6 Tbsp. sugar
2 eggs

Directions:
In a bowl, whisk boiling water into cocoa until smooth. Add in milk and vanilla; set aside.

Preheat oven to 350F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.

In a small bowl, sift flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat together butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour mixture in batches, alternating with cocoa mixture; beginning and ending with the flour. Fill liners about halfway full.

Bake at 350F for 18-20 minutes. Cool on wire rack.

Chocolate Ganache:
½ cup heavy cream
8 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chunks
2 Tbsp. light corn syrup

Heat the cream until boiling, then pour over chocolate, stirring to melt, adding the corn syrup. Dip each cupcake into ganache upside down to get a good coating on it.

Strawberry Tart

Now is strawberry season here. The city where I live has their own strawberry productions. During the season, along the streets you can find the stands that sell fresh strawberries. The price is a bit more expensive than from the supermarkt, but the taste is really sweet and the size is also bigger. Really nice to see it. Every year in the month of May, it'll be held an election of Princess Strawberry (Aardbeien Princess). During that election it'll be also shown up the best and the biggest strawberries in the neighbourhood.

Since I have too much strawberries at home and nothing to do today because the weather is really bad, so I tried to make this strawberry tart. To make the cake itself was not really a problem, but to make the filling was a bit tricky. But after I followed steps by steps all the instructions, it worked well.

Ingredients:
For cake:
4 eggs
2 eatspoons hot water
150 gr sugar
1 package vanilla sugar
100 gr flour
100 gr maizena
2 teaspoons baking powder

Filling:
1 package (12gr) + 2 full teaspoons gelatine powder(*for Indonesia can be changed with agar-agar powder, I guess)
5 eatspoons cold water
5 dl blended strawberry (from 500 gr strawberry)
1-2 eatspoons lemon juice
100 gr sugar
6 dl whipped cream
strawberry for decoration
Directions:
Cake:
1. Whisk eggs and water for about 1 minute, then add sugar gradually, then whisk again for about 2 minutes.
2. Mix flour, maizena and baking powder together. Sift this mixed flour into eggs batter gradually by using the lowest speed.
3. Pour the batter into cake form (diam. 28 cm).
4. Bake for about 30 minutes and heat 180°C.
5. After baked, remove the cake straight away from the form and put on the wire rack. Let it cool, then divide into 2 or 3 bottoms. After cooling you can sprinkle with 8 eatspoons strawberry liqeur.

Filling:
1. Heat gelatine powder and water. Stir slowly until gelatine dissolved.
2. Mix blended-strawberry, lemon juice and sugar. Add into hot gelatine mixed and let it boil together. Put aside to let it cool.
3. After the gelatine mixed starting becoming harder, whisk the whipped cream and then mix it slowly into gelatine mixed.
4. Spread this mix as filling, the top and the side of the cake. Add fresh strawberries as decoration. Let it cool in the fridge before serving.

Truffle Tart

If you're chocolate lovers, you must try this one. This truffle tart is extremely rich, the mixture is so moist and the sweetness is just melted in your tongue. What I want to say here..... this is fingerlicking good and I guarantee this truffle tart will help you coming out from your stress.

The original recipe as written here is for 16 slices. Mine was made from 2/3 of the cake ingredients and I used cake form with diam. 22 cm. I could divide it into 3 layers and the cake was enough for 8 big slices. But for the filling and chocolate icing, it remained the same measurements as written here.

For the cake:
4 eggs
4 eatspoons hot water
175 gr sugar
1 pack vanilla sugar
100 gr flour
100 gr maizena
30 gr cacao powder
3 teaspoons baking powder

For the filling:
125 gr butter
150 gr sugar powder
100 gr cacao powder
1 egg
1-2 eatspoon(s) rhum
2 eatspoons water
1 pack vanilla sugar

Chocolate icing:
100 gr chocolate
cocosmilk/cream as needed (I used 6-7 teaspoons cocosmilk)
75 gr chocolate sprinkles
Directions:
Cake:
1. Whisk eggs & hot water with highest speed for 1 minute.
2. Gradually add sugar & vanilla sugar and whisk again for about 2 minutes.
3. Mix flour, maizena, cacao powder & baking powder.
4. Sift 1/2 of flour mix gradually into eggs mixture using the lowest speed. Do the same way with the other 1/2 flour mix.
5. Grease the cake form (dia.28 cm) and lay greaseproof paper on the bottom of the form.
6. Pour the cake mixture in the form and bake for 30 minutes on 180°C.
7. Straight after baking, remove from the form and reverse the cake on wire rack. Remove the greasproof paper too. Let it cool and then divide into 2-3 layers. Set aside.

Filling:
1. Stir butter gently.
2. Mix sugar powder with cacao powder. Sift gradually in the butter. Stir gently.
3. Add egg and rhum, keep stirring and mix thoroughly.
4. Take 16 teaspoons mixture to make 16 "size of cherries" balls. Put aside in the fridge.
5. The rest of the mixture add with water & vanilla sugar. Stir thoroughly.
6. Cover the cake layers with this mixture.

Chocolate Icing:
1. Break the chocolate in pieces.
2. Au bain-marie on a low fire stir the chocolate to become soft.
3. Add the cocosmilk or cream in.
4. Cover the top and the side of the cake with this icing.
5. Sprinkle the side of the cake with chocolate sprinkles. Keep it in the fridge before serving.

Tiramisu Tart

I like tiramisu a lot, but I don't like the idea to eat raw eggs. So I was really happy when I found this recipes from Libelle magazine that there is another way to make tiramisu by baking it.

Ingredients:
5 eggs
200gr sugar
200gr flour, sifted
90gr chocolade sprinkles

60 ml coffee liqeur or strong coffee
250gr mascarpone
100gr sugar powder
100 ml whipped cream
½ tsp vanilla-essence (I didn't use this)
Chocolate sprinkles
Cacaopowder
Directions:
1. Whisk eggs and sugar until raising and fluffy.
2. Add flour gradually and keep whisking.
3. Add chocolate sprinkles in the batter.
4. Pour into cake form diam. 24 cm. Bake for about 50 minutes and temperature 180°C.

Garnishing:
1. Divide cake into 2. Sprinkle with coffee liquer or strong coffee. Let the cake absorb the liquer.
2. Whisk mascarpone, sugar powder, cream and vanilla essence until soft.
3. Put half of mascarpone mixture as filling.
4. The other half is used for side, top and decorations of the cake.
5. As finishing, sprinkle the cake with cacaopowcer or grated chocolate.