Fold in the Flour ...

In our house, if you want to make something for the boys that will be universally popular, there's really only one thing that will cut it. Chocolate. And lots of it. With a little bit more hidden inside, if possible. I wanted to try and make a plain chocolate cupcake into something that the boys would love. And they loved these. Kerching! These are a soft, fluffy sponge, with a hidden chocolate sauce centre, covered in rich chocolate buttercream. Not too sweet, they really hit that chocolate spot. Even Sam joined in, as I had enough of the sponge mix and buttercream left over to make 10 little bite-sized cupcakes. Just perfect for a toddler's chubby grip. The sponge is my trusty basic chocolate recipe. You can make it as an all-in-one, and chuck the ingredients into a bowl and blitz with a hand mixer. I tend to adapt the method slightly, though, creaming the sugar and butter first. I just think that if the sugar dissolves into the butter properly,...

So, in other news today, Susie has published yet another gingerbread post ... Yes, gingerbread, again. I know. I'm sorry. But it is that time of year. And besides, I think I told you that I love the stuff ... Anyway, you may recall my recent Snowy Gingerbread Cottage post, in which I told you all about the humongous amount of gingerbread dough I made from a BBC Good Food recipe ? I said that I had made an army of gingerbread men, and this is where they turned up. As incredibly cute (even if I say so myself) cupcake toppers dipped in dark chocolate! Sadly, I can't take the credit for this fab idea, as I first noticed it on a Sweetapolita post last year. But it stuck in my head and I thought that when I had an opportune time, I would give it a go. And Oh My, they are delicious! Even on their own. But on top of Gingerbread Cupcakes with Ginger Buttercream? Now you're talking my kind of winter warmer. The cupcakes are easy to make, and I have adapted ...

With Halloween just gone, it seems that we are well and truly into the changing of the seasons. Although I didn't get my act together enough to post this in time for yesterday, given its pumpkin theme, I thought you might like to see my interpretation of a great autumn recipe from Ina Garten's new book, Foolproof . I love Barefoot Contessa. I'm sure I've told you that before. Discovering the programme was a complete revelation to me. This was shortly after we got cable tv, around 1998, and I actually discovered that there was a whole network devoted to food and cookery programmes. I was in my element. Unfortunately work used to get in the way a bit, so I used to place a 4 hour tape in the video and set it record. Then, when I got in from work, I'd be able to watch everything. Over time, Barefoot Contessa was one of the programmes I especially looked forward to. So anyway, when Ina comes out with a new book it is always on my must buy list. Her recipes u...

Apparently, it's cupcake month. Well, according to Food Network and a few others. (I must be a bit odd then as it seems every month is cupcake month in our house.) Anyway, I came across a new recipe the other day that I wanted to try, as it involved toffee and caramel. Two of my favourite flavours. But it was the salted caramel that really caught my attention. It's something I've always wanted to try making but have never got around to it. I had a bit of a nudge the other week though. Now, I suspect like anyone else that is interested in baking, I have been hooked to the latest series of Great British Bake Off , currently on BBC2 . It's hard not to sympathise with the contestants when they are put through their paces on one of the technical challenges, or are under the pressure of having to produce a showstopping bake against the clock in an unfamiliar oven. Last week's episode had them making cremé caramels for the technical challenge, and there was muc...

You may recall that I've said before that I love lemon cakes. I've done a few now, and judging by the popularity of my Luscious Lemon Yoghurt Cake post, so do you, too. Sometime ago, I bought a jar of lemon curd intending to use it as a filling for cupcakes. At the time I was just going to top them with lemon buttercream. I've been so busy recently, though, I never got around to making them. Then, I had a re-think after buying a magazine I saw in my local supermarket recently. Cupcake Kids is part of the Cupcake Heaven series, and while the recipes are aimed at children, there were lots to interest me, too, including one for lemon meringue cupcakes. I didn't want to use the cupcake recipe, as I wanted to use my own, but I thought I'd try the meringue method they used, as it looked pretty simple. These cupcakes have a lovely soft, fluffy sponge with the lemon curd giving a sharp centre, beautifully offset by the meringue. I've got to say that I was ...

Tonight, the Games of the XXX Olympiad begin and the Olympic Cauldron will be lit over the city of London. For the next 17 days, it will burn brightly as a symbol of the Olympic movement and its ideals:    "The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not winning but taking part; the essential thing in life is not conquering but fighting well." Baron Pierre de Coubertin, founder of the modern Olympic movement. I've always loved the romanticism of the Olympics, and especially the flame. Who can forget the opening ceremony of the Barcelona Olympics, when an archer fired a flaming arrow over the cauldron, which then ignited? So, when Laura of Laura Loves Cakes and Rachel of Dolly Bakes announced that this month's Calendar Cakes challenge (hosted by Laura) was based on the Olympics, I didn't have to think too long about what I wanted to do. Inspired by the orange of the flame, I decided to do an orange flavoured and coloured frosting, with a cho...