A Baker's Week: Cakes, Cupcakes and Lemon Squares Galore

Hi guys!!!

Welcome back. We have welcomed June with gray skies and showers of rain and while many complain about wet shoes, I am only to happy to see those drops pitter patter onto the ground. On a sadder note, I can't turn on the radio or T.V. without terrible news on the climatic side overpowering everything. Worldwide floods, thunderstorms, forest fires and tornadoes in the Midwest of the United States have shaken us lately. While many aren't believers, I do maintain that these severe climatic changes are product of the drastic global warming we currently live in. But I digress...you didn't click on this page to read about my views on climate and the world. 

After a tiring day...the results!!!

Now, as promised, I made a huge mess of my kitchen this past week. A detail my mother wasn't too happy about. On the menu I had mini lemon squares, mini carrot cupcakes, english tea cakes, 2 pure gold! chocolate cakes, a carrot cake, a very berry cheesecake and a scrumptious blueberry and mango trifle. If you've followed my blog, you probably have the majority of the recipes, but keep reading for the chocolate cake frosting and cheesecake instructions!!!

Absolutely scrumptious!!!

After many tiring days and short sleeping cycles, I managed to pull through with my orders with soaring scores. Tuesday morning I began by baking the mini cupcakes (of which now I am at an intermediate level thanks to my cupcake course) and I followed through with lemon squares and english tea cakes. In total, I had made 70 mini cupcakes, 64 english tea cakes and over 250 mini lemon squares. While they all are mini and sound easy enough to make, I have to admit it was time consuming. By the end of the day, I barely managed to make it to my warm bed and passed out. But it wasn't over. Early on Wednesday, I decorated the lemon squares and mini cupcakes for a fresher taste and headed out in the rain to deliver my goods. My initial relief came when they were delivered, but I managed to finally relax when the reviews came in later on. Great, amazing and simply marvelous...I went to bed happy!!! 

Don't they look divine?

Thursday my mom was celebrating another year of her life and to commemorate her, I baked a glorious, pure chocolate, dulce de leche filled, black magic cake. I finally found the perfect frosting to accompany the rich and moist cake and the empty cake board was gratifying enough for me to understand the cake was that good.  The batch of lemon squares I offered alongside were gone by the time the cake was over. Promises of future customers came flying in and I am grateful for that. Slowly, my small business is picking up, with only positive remarks by word of mouth pushing me on. You know what they say, slowly, but surely. 

The Birthday Girl with her Birthday goodies!!!

After a long day, I still managed to wake up early next morning to bake two banana breads, a carrot cake, deliver these and return to bake a batch of english tea cakes and a pound cake. While the pound cake cooled down, I finished the tea cakes. Once cooled down, I cubed the cake and made the lovely trifle. I delivered the goods, received reviews and despite the late hour, I found myself baking another carrot cake, the result of a late order. But I happily obliged. Sadly, I found myself in a personal rut the following day, as I failed to deliver the cake on time due to a meeting I had at the time. I guess its safe to say I have lost a customer. But hey, this happens. I offered to deliver it as soon as I left, but she never replied. 

The fabulous Carrot Cake...it has become very popular!!!

I returned home later on in the evening and baked my regular cheesecake with a few changes and an addition of my own: blackberries. Sunday was my Nana's birthday. She's my great-aunt and the cheesecake I baked was for her. I accompanied the cake with a blueberry and strawberry sauce and topped the cheesecake with fresh blueberries and strawberries. The cheesecake was delicious according to the remarks and this morning, as I checked the fridge for something to nibble on, I realized it was gone. The missing chocolate cake was baked early Sunday morning and the rest of the day, gray and blurry, passed in a blink of an eye. So, in few words, my baking week was successful. 

Try out this version now with the fantastic
pound cake and my mango jam filling!!!

Despite it having been a tiring one, I can only hope the coming weeks are filled with orders just like the last week of May. Let's see what June has in store for me. For now, I have a few orders to look up to: the never disappointing Red Velvet cake and two Vanilla Passion Fruit filled cakes. I wish you all a lovely week.

Until next time.

xx

Best Chocolate Cake Ever

Adapted from My Baking Addiction 

and Beyond Frosting

Death by Chocolate...Part III

Ingredients:

Black Magic Cake:**

2 C. sugar

1-3/4 C. ll-purpose flour

3/4 C. cocoa

2 t. baking soda

1 t. baking powder

1 t. salt

2 eggs

1 C. buttermilk or sour milk*

1 C. strong black coffee OR 2 t. powdered instant coffee plus 1 C. boiling water

1/2 C. vegetable oil

1 t. vanilla extract

*Make sour milk by adding a couple of 

drops of lemon/lime juice or vinegar

Chocolate Frosting:**

1 C. unsalted butter, at room temperature

4 oz Cream cheese, at room temperature

1/3 C. Cocoa powder

1 C. Vanilla cake mix

4 t. Pure vanilla extract

3 C. Confectioner's sugar

2 T. Heavy cream (no substitutions)

**

Dulce de Leche filling

Preparation:

Black Magic Cake:

Heat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour two 9" round springform pans. 

Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Add

eggs, buttermilk, coffee, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer for 2 minutes (the

batter will be thin). Pour batter evenly into prepared pans. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until

wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for 1o minutes; remove from pans to

wire racks. Cool completely.

**Original Black Magic Cake recipe from My Baking Addiction

Chocolate Frosting:

Allow butter and cream cheese to come to room temperature. Use a fine sifter to sift the

cocoa powder, eliminating any clumps. Once softened, combine butter and cream cheese in

a large mixing bowl and beat on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Slowly add cocoa

powder and continue to beat on medium speed until smooth. Add 2 t. vanilla extract. Mix

well. Add 1 C. vanilla cake mix and continue to beat on medium speed; add the remaining 2

t. vanilla extract. Gradually add the confectioner's sugar, followed by the heavy cream.  

Beat for several minutes with the paddle attachment on medium high speed.  Switch to the

whisk attachment and beat for another 3-5 minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy.

**Original Chocolate Frosting recipe from Beyond Frosting

Assembly:

On cake board, place one chocolate cake layer, flat side up. Spread 1/3 C. dulce de leche

filling. Over the filling, spread between 1/2 to 2/3 C. chocolate frosting. Place second

chocolate cake layer, flat side down on top. Frost the top and sides of cake with frosting

until smooth. Fix a piping bag with a 1M wilton nozzle, or any other open star tip and pipe

a shell border alongside the bottom of the cake. On the top, pipe shells in a spiral manner

until the entire top is covered.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Berry Cheesecake

Adapted from Epicurious

Happy Birthday Nana!!!

Ingredients:

Crust:

2 cups graham cracker cookie crumbs

1/4 C. sugar

1/4 C. unsalted butter, melted

Cheesecake:

3 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature

3/4 C. sugar

1 t. vanilla extract

3 large eggs

**

Blackberries

Strawberries

Blueberries

Preparation:

Crust:

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 325°F. Blend cookie crumbs, sugar and

butter in processor until well mixed. Press crumb mixture onto bottom and halfway up

sides of 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 2 1/2-inch-high sides. Bake crust until set,

about 10 minutes. Transfer to rack.

Cheesecake:

Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl until smooth. Beat in

vanilla. Add eggs and beat just until blended. Place blackberries on crust. Pour filling into

crust-lined pan. Bake until sides of cheesecake are slightly puffed and begin to crack, and

center moves slightly when pan is shaken gently, about 1 hour. Transfer cake to rack. Cool

completely. Cover; chill overnight.

Decorate cheesecake with strawberry halves and fresh blueberries.

Accompany slices with a berry sauce.

**To make sauce: in a saucepan, place desired berries, 1/2 C. sugar

and 1/4 C. lemon juice. Allow maceration and simmer on low-medium

heat for 8-10 minutes. The 

sauce should be in a weak thread stage.

.