Easy Strawberry Cupcake Recipe For You

One of the most common questions that shows up in my inbox has to do with my Doctored Up Cake Mix Recipe for chocolate cupcakes. It yields a batch of pretty stellar cupcakes, so people are always curious if they can adapt the recipe with different flavor combinations. To which I respond, why not? To me, baking is all about playing around in the kitchen, sometimes I get it right and sometimes, I get it wrong – way wrong.

However, a lot of my readers come here for recipes that have been tested in my kitchen and aren’t too keen on me advising them to head into the realm of recipe development and testing. And that’s okay too. I’ll get responses like, Well, have you tried it? What pudding did you use? What brand of cake works best? Can I use less oil? The list goes on and on.

I love hearing from you guys, and really what’s the point of this blog if people aren’t making the recipes – so I try to answer each question, even if it takes me weeks and weeks and weeks.

My point is, a lot of what I do here on MBA is trial and error and it’s okay to make mistakes and get frustrated and cuss out your cupcakes. But, I promise you that with each error, you’ll learn something. Even if that something is not to bite into a hot Rolo Cookie because it will burn your lip and leave a weird purple mark – not that I did that or anything.

When my BFF, Brittani, told me that she made Strawberry Cupcakes using the boxed mix recipe, I immediately started asking her questions to which she had very few answers. I thought her idea would be the perfect way to show you that playing around with a simple idea can have great results and there’s really nothing to be afraid of.

Boxed vanilla cake mix combines with Greek strawberry yogurt and fresh strawberries to create simple, moist cupcakes that are bursting with strawberry flavor. Add on a swirl of strawberry buttercream and you’ve got one stellar summery cupcake with minimal fuss. The world is your oyster here, folks. Try it with Peach Greek yogurt and fresh peaches, or Blueberry yogurt and fresh blueberries. I’d love to hear the combinations you come up with, and how they worked for you.

Enjoy The Delicious Indian Cuisine

Food has been a necessary feature to find out a country’s traditions and history. The collection of the mouthwatering dishes of Indian cuisine is just outstanding. It is frequently said by the people that `Diversity is the flavor of our life’. The proverb is perfect to explain the Indian cuisine. The food traditions of India not only offer spicy, delicious foods but it also offers many kinds of yummy desserts.

Usually, Indian cuisines include Indian sweets, Indian beverages, vegetarian food, Indian pickles, Indian snacks and so more. Moreover, they include Biryani or Pulauo, flatbreads, Chapatti or roti, puffy Paratha, Poori etc. Indian cuisines like Biryani or Pulauo is very a rich food as contain so much ghee or oil. On the other hand, flatbreads and Chapaties are comparatively healthy foods because they are totally oil free. Fried foods like Pakoras and Samosas are so tasty but these foods have the same problem, full of starch, oil as well as salt.
Indian main cuisines are Curries or vegetables with rice. Indian people make these curries with creamy and buttery sauce. It’s a one of the delicious Indian cuisines. Another Indian cuisine is “Dal”. Dal is lentil curry or soup and it can be eaten with bread or rice. But if you are health conscious then you need to avoid eating excessive Dal since it contains sodium which is detrimental for our health. Besides, these Indian cuisines include many sorts of yummy foods like Korma, Malai, Makhani and margarine. In fact, they have some traditional meat dishes like Chicken Tikka Masala, tandoori meats, and kabab. But amongst all, their desserts are really awesome. They use lots of sugar and fruits to prepare the appetizing desserts.
Indian cuisine is becoming well-known for their traditional foods all over the world. And the interesting thing is, in India, you will find a skilled cook in each house. However, Indian cuisines have an extraordinary taste and flavor that make them different from the other cuisines.

Quindim, A Popular Coconut Treat In Brazil

A variety of small individual, petit four-like treats are often served at South American parties. Quindim, a popular coconut treat in Brazil made with lots of egg yolks, coconut, sugar, and butter, is often served this way, although it can also be made into one large ring custard. Quindin is baked in a water bath, and the coconut rises to the top while it's baking. The cakes are then flipped out of the molds to reveal their sparkly golden cap of custard. The coconut becomes the sweet chewy crust.

It is called quindim (pronounced keen-jean), and it is an extremely simple recipe, with only three ingredients. Though simple to make, it is extremely rich and very sweet, and one small quindim will satisfy all but the most rabid sweet-eater.

Ingredients

1 cup white sugar

1 cup shredded coconut

1 tablespoon butter, softened

5 egg yolks

1 egg white

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Pass the egg yolks through a fine sieve into a large mixing bowl. Add the sugar, and mix carefully by hand. Put the mixture into a heavy medium saucepan, and heat over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the sugar dissolves and the mixture flows from a spoon in a thin string. Remove from heat.

Let the mixture cool a few minutes, then add the coconut and melted butter. Stir slowly and carefully to mix.

Divide the mixture among 8 ramekins or custard cups which have been greased with soft butter and dusted with granulated sugar. Place in a bain-marie or water bath, and place in pre-heated oven. Cook for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick stuck in a quindim comes out clean.

Let cool, unmold if desired, and serve at room temperature or chilled.

Sesame Wafers Are Light, Tender Flaky Crackers

Sesame Wafers are light, tender flaky crackers with a delicate sesame flavor. They are an excellent complement to cheese, pate, smoked fish or any spread. See the Recipes for Bremner Sesame Wafers for Salmon Mousse en Crust, Sesame Tofu Fry, Sesame Lemon Chicken or Crab & Shrimp Cakes.

Sesame 'Benne' Wafers

6 tbsp sesame seeds (approx 55g)

160g light brown sugar

90g butter, room temp

1 egg, beaten

60g flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

Make honey sesame wafers:

Beat together butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until smooth, then add honey, beating until combined. Beat in egg white until combined well, then reduce speed to low and add flour and salt until combined. Chill batter, covered, until slightly firm, about 30 minutes.

Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 375°F.

Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment. Using offset spatula, spread half of batter (about 1/3 cup) into a very thin, sheer 14- by 11-inch rectangle on 1 sheet. Using tip of spatula or a butter knife, section off 12 squares by scraping knife through batter to make a 1/4-inch-wide space between batter sections. Sprinkle half of sesame toffee evenly over batter. Repeat with remaining batter and brittle on second sheet. Bake wafers, switching position of sheets and rotating 180 degrees halfway through baking, until golden (some parts may be pale golden), about 8 minutes. Cool to room temperature on sheets on racks, about 10 minutes. Peel parchment off wafers.

French Bread Which Can Give You A Totally Different Flavor

When you toast bread, a couple of things happen. Some of the water in the bread evaporates, making the bread dryer and a bit lighter. Also, carbohydrate molecules on the surface of the bread undergo a chemical reaction with proteins that causes the food to turn brown.

That reaction--called the Maillard reaction--doesn't significantly change the nutritional value of the carbohydrates. It can, however, reduce the digestibility and quality of proteins. Seeing as toast probably isn't your primary source of dietary protein, this is probably not a big issue.

Slice French bread into 20 slices, 1-inch each. (Use any extra bread for garlic toast or bread crumbs). Arrange slices in a generously buttered 9 by 13-inch flat baking dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and beat with arotary beater or whisk until blended but not too bubbly. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly with the milk-egg mixture. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

There is one other thing to take into consideration, however.

Toasting bread also creates a compound called acrylamide. Although acrylamide can be toxic in large amounts, there's no evidence that the amount of acrylamide you would typically get from food is a problem. Nonetheless, if you're concerned about acrylamide, you might want to set the toaster on "light".

Ingredients

1 challah loaf, sliced 3/4 inch thick

8 extra-large eggs

5 cups half-and-half or milk

3 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon grated orange zest

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Confectioners' sugar and pure maple syrup, for serving

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Arrange the bread in two layers in a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking dish, cutting the bread to fit the dish. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, half-and-half, honey, orange zest, vanilla, and salt. Pour the mixture over the bread and press the bread down. Allow to soak for 10 minutes.

Place the baking dish in a larger roasting pan and add enough very hot tap water to the roasting pan to come an inch up the side of the baking dish. Cover the roasting pan tightly with aluminum foil, tenting it so the foil doesn't touch the pudding. Make two slashes in the foil to allow steam to escape. Bake for 45 minutes, remove the aluminum foil, and bake for another 40 to 45 minutes, until the pudding puffs up and the custard is set. Remove from the oven and cool slightly.

Method

Boil the potatoes and keep aside.

When it is cool, mash it.

Heat oil in a pan.

Put the curry leaves in the pan.

Stir and put finely chopped onions in it.

Also add ginger-garlic paste and green chillies to it and saute well.

When the raw smell is gone, add turmeric powder, chilli powder and masala powder and saute well.

Add salt.

Now put the chopped tomato and saute well.

When the oil leaves the sides, put the mashed potatoes in it and mix well.

Make into a paste.

You can sprinkle water in it.

Put the coriander leaves in the vegetable and mix well.

Take from the stove and keep aside.

Take the bread slices and toast it lightly to a light brown colour on a pan or in a bread toaster.

Now take a bread slice.

Apply the masala, thinly or thickly, according to your taste, on the bread slice.

Now keep another bread slice on top of it and press well in such a way that the masala does not get squeezed out.

The bread masala toast is ready.

You can have it with tomato sauce or ketchup.

Serving tips: Take a small wicker basket; keep a checked or a lace cloth inside the basket. Place the breat toasts inside the basket. You can also arrange small toys like mickey mouse, the size of a toy in a keychain in the basket to attract the kids and to create a picnic mood.

Pineapple Buns The Bun Is Named Pineapple For Its Appearance Rather Than Taste

Every time I visit and browse Ann’s blog, Pigpig’s Corner, I’m attracted and amazed by her gorgeous, mouth-watering pictures. Not only does Ann have intriguing recipes, but also publish heaps of high quality of restaurant reviews written by the Wild Boar, her partner. When Ann asked me to guest post on her lovely blog, I was wondering what I could contribute more than she’s already had. Then came a suggestion from Ann, a challenge to me, to make a very popular snack in Hong Kong, Pineapple Buns (aka BoLuo Bao in Cantonese).

Thank you, Ann, for giving me this opportunity, but sorry for taking quite a long time to send my post in. The recipe I developed here, was adapted from the owner of a Hong Kong bakery shop, specialized in making and selling pineapple buns (refer to this video for original recipe in Chinese and the whole process). There are two important ingredients in the original recipe, lard for making the topping crispy, and ammonia powder for making crackling patterns on the crispy topping. As I don’t use lard in my home-cooking at all, I tweaked it and used butter only. Besides, how would I make Asian breads without tangzhong? Absolutely not. Many of my readers have already known that I’m addicted totangzhong breads because they are soft and fluffy, and can be kept for days. Since I tweaked the original recipe with butter and tangzhong, I have had three trials until I got it right and feel satisfied. In the end, the original recipe was totally unidentified with mine. Or to say, doing the same thing by taking different routes. If any of you would like the original recipe translated in English, feel free to email me.

Pineapple Buns with a stick slab of butter within (Bor Lor Yao) are also commonly consumed prior to attending weddings back in the day in Hong Kong if the guests know that there will be heavy alcohol consumption. The reason is that the butter will coat the stomach and delay the absorption of alcohol, and thus, delay the onset of alcohols effects. you have been to Chinatown and have tried authentic Cantonese dim sum, you will probably know pineapple buns (boroh bun). Regardless of its name, there is no pineapple in the bun—it’s a soft bun with a sweet and crusty topping, which is extremely tasty when it’s freshly baked. I love pineapple buns and that’s why I asked my contributor Siew Loon to share her pineapple buns recipe. If you love Asian-style pastry, buns, and bread, I am sure you will love this. Enjoy!

Over the last few months, the craze about Asian breads and pastry has prompted me to try baking these delicacies such as pineapple buns, Hokkaido milk loaf, Castella, and the list goes on. One of my favorites is pineapple buns (or called buo luo bao/ in Cantonese) which is a popular bun in Hong Kong. This is a MUST EAT on my list whenever I visit Hong Kong.

To make the "water roux starter", mix the water and the flour until well blended and lump free in a bowl. Place it on the gas stove and warm it up over the medium heat to reach 65C/150F for 2-3 minutes. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator. Let it stand at room temperature before using it.

To make the dough, add dough ingredients a mixing bowl. Mix with dough hook at slow speed for 1 minute. Change to the medium speed, and continue to mix on slow speed for 3 minutes on medium speed until a dough forms.

Add butter gradually and mix for approx. 5 minutes on medium speed until gluten is fully developed, i. e. elastic, smooth, non-sticky and leave from sides of mixing bowl.

Ferment the dough in a lightly greased plastic bag for 1 hour, Leave in a warm place until dough is double in volume.

Punch the dough down to release gases produced in the fermenting process. Divide dough into 5 portions and round up. Let them rest for 15 minutes at the room temperature.

To make the topping, whip the butter until soft and sift in the icing sugar and mix well. Add in the egg in 3 portions and stir until combined after each addition. Fold in the dried milk and half of bread flour. Mix with a plastic spatula. Gradually add in the rest of bread flour until the topping mixture has reach the softness like an eardrop. Divide the mixture into 5 portions.

Place the divided topping on the lightly floured working surface. Flatten the dough and put it on top of the topping, seal tightly.

Score topping lightly in a checked pattern with a knife and let rest for 35-40 minutes. Brush on egg yolk and bake in a preheated 180C/350F oven for about 15 minutes.

As for using ammonia powder, it’s quite tricky. If used not enough, you’d be disappointed for no crackling patterns appear on the topping. If more than enough, your buns would smell weird (yes, like wee). Hope that I didn’t scare you off. If you don’t want to risk, or can’t find any ammonia powder, you can skip the ingredient, and use a knife to score the top pastry before transferring your buns in oven for baking. You’d get regular patterns, instead of getting irregular crackling that classic Hong Kong pineapple buns would have. Taste remains the same anyway. Hope you all like my sharing here.

It Is Said That Vanilla Is The Most Popular Flavor Of Ice Cream

Everyone should gave a great recipe for Vanilla Ice Cream in their repertoire. Here’s my favorite, which you can serve with anything, from a freshly-baked fruit pie, a warm berry crisp, or simply smothered with dark chocolate sauce or caramel sauce and toasted nuts.
　　
It’s said that vanilla is the most popular flavor of ice cream. But most people don’t know that vanilla is also the most labor-intensive of all crops. Because of that, vanilla beans and pure extract are costly. Thankfully, a little vanilla goes a long way. I use both a bean and vanilla extract in my ice cream since I find they’re slightly different flavors and each compliments the other.
　　
Harold McGee confirmed my suspicion by telling me that they’ve discovered that alcohol (which most vanilla extracts contain), even if cooked off, improves the way we sense the taste of things. Which he said confirmed what my taste buds were telling me.
　　
The three most common types of vanilla are Bourbon, Tahitian, and Mexican. Bourbon vanilla, from Madagascar has a bold, very-pronounced flavor. Tahitian is more floral, and bit more elusive. And real Mexican is strong, yet creamy-tasting, perhaps my favorite of them all. Don’t use the cheap Mexican knock-offs, since most contain coumarin, which is toxic and banned for food use in the United States. True Mexican vanilla should be similarly-priced to other vanillas and is worth every cent.
　　
Ingredients
　　
2 cups half-and-half
　　
1 cup whipping cream
　　
1 cup minus 2 tablespoons sugar
　　
2 tablespoons peach preserves (not jelly)
　　
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
　　
Directions
　　
Combine all ingredients (including the bean and its pulp) in a large saucepan and place over medium heat. Attach a frying or candy thermometer to inside of pan. (see note below) Stirring occasionally, bring the mixture to 170 degrees F. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Remove the hull of the vanilla bean, pour mixture into lidded container and refrigerate mixture overnight to mellow flavors and texture.
　　
Freeze mixture in ice cream freezer according to unit's instructions. The mixture will not freeze hard in the machine. Once the volume has increased by 1/2 to 3/4 times, and reached a soft serve consistency, spoon the mixture back into a lidded container and harden in the freezer at least 1 hour before serving.
　　
NOTE: If you do not have a thermometer, bring the mixture just barely to a simmer. As soon as you see a bubble hit the surface, remove it from the heat. Do not let it boil.