Sinful Popcorn

Red Velvet Popcorn

Ingredients

• 8 cups popped popcorn, 1/2 cup unpopped kernels
• 3 cups red velvet cake crumbs
• 0.56kg white cooking chocolate

How to Make

1. Pop the popcorn using an air popper into a large bowl.
2. Melt your white chocolate according to package directions.
3. Pour the melted white chocolate over the popcorn. Stir to coat completely.
4. Pour the popcorn onto a waxed paper lined counter and sprinkle with your red velvet crumbs.
5. Let dry completely before eating.

Recipe adapted from Cookies and Cups

Blue Velvet

I really dislike mince pies so this Christmas lets make red velvet and blue velvet cupcakes instead.....

Ingredients

CAKE:

2 cups Sugar
2 sticks Butter, Room Temperature
2 whole Eggs
1-½ Tablespoon Liquid Blue Food Coloring
1 Tablespoon Cocoa Powder
1 drop Violet Gel Food Coloring (optional)
2-½ cups Cake Flour
1 teaspoon Salt
1 cup Buttermilk
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
½ teaspoons Baking Soda
1 Tablespoon White Vinegar

FROSTING:
1 pound Cream Cheese, softened
2 sticks Butter, Softened
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
4 cups Sifted Confectioners Sugar


Preparation InstructionsPreheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare cupcake pan(s) with paper liners.
Cake:
In a mixing bowl, cream the sugar and butter, mix until light and fluffy. Add the eggs 1 at a time and mix well after each addition. Mix cocoa and food coloring together to form a paste, and then add to sugar mixture; mix well. Sift together flour and salt. Add flour mixture to the creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk. Blend in vanilla. In a small bowl, combine baking soda and vinegar and add to mixture.
Pour batter into cupcake papers. Batter will be thick! Bake for 25–30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool completely before frosting.

Frosting:
In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla together until smooth. Add the sugar and on low speed, beat until incorporated. Increase the speed to high and mix until very light and fluffy. Frost the cupcakes with a butter knife or pipe it on with a big star tip.

Blau x


Recipe from SprinkleBakes

The Back to School Post

You may have noticed I haven't been about of late. Like everyone, I've had an incredibly busy Summer. But I'm back now and really looking forward to getting back in to posting. In the meantime, here's what I've been up to:

Spending as much time as I can in Dishoom, a super sweet pop up bar on the Southbank. Aside from the Gola cocktails and kulfi, its one of my favourite interiors in London at moment and since its here for a good time, and not for a long time, I've been spending as much time there as possible so I take take mental photos of the cool designs and put them in my future abode. It's also where you will find this awesome clock.


This Summer marked the end of my bridesmaid career. I was part of the bridal party for my wonderful cousin Emer's wedding in Cork. It was my forth time being bridesmaid, so I reckon I'm fairly good at this point. However, this is my last pro bono event. Got to capitalise on your skills, like.
I've taken on a new all consuming role at THE CHAPEL. Its been amazing. This photo was taken recently as Redkens Tribe where one of our amazing team was in the final. If you're interested, check out our blog where I've been doing a lot of posting too.

Ezzie x

Pretty Pretty Pavlova

It's not a dessert I'd ever order from a menu but I just love to make and eat a summer fruit Pavlova. 
A meringue-based dessert named after the Russian ballet dancer Anna Pavlova created in honour of the dancer either during or after one of her tours to Australia and New Zealand in the 1920s. The above was my hangover cure the other morning. With its with a crisp crust and soft, light inner texture it also makes for a delicious treat.So here's the recipe I like to use;


Ingredients:

• 4 large egg whites at room temperature
• 1 cup of Castor sugar, also known as "Berry sugar"
• 1 tsp of white vinegar
• 1/2 Tbsp of cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp of pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cups of whipping cream
• Fresh fruit such as strawberries, raspberries, kiwi fruit, passionfruit, bananas, blueberries
• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 275F (140C) and place the rack in middle of the oven. Line a baking tray with foil and draw a 7 inch circle on the foil with the blunt edge of a knife (don't tear the foil). Set aside.
2. In a clean, medium-sized metal bowl, beat the egg whites with a clean electric mixer on medium speed. Beat until the whites form soft peaks.
3. Gently sprinkle the sugar into the egg whites, one teaspoon at a time. Don't just lump the sugar in the bowl and never stop beating the eggs until you finish the sugar. Your egg whites should now be glossy stiff peaks.
4. Sprinkle the cornstarch and vinegar on the meringue and fold in gently with a plastic spatula. Add the vanilla and gently fold the mixture again.
5. Now gently spread the meringue in the circle on the foil to make a circular base. Make sure the edges of the meringue are slightly higher then the center so you have a very slight well in the middle.
6. Bake the meringue for about 1 hour and 15 minutes or until it goes a very pale, pinkish egg shell color.
7. Turn the oven off and leave the door slightly ajar to let the meringue cool completely. As the meringue cools, it will crack slightly.
8. Just before serving, take the meringue out of the oven and remove it gently from the foil and place on a plate.
9. Whip the cream with the vanilla extract until it forms peaks. Prepare the fruit by washing and slicing.
10. Gently spread the cream to the top of the meringue with a spatula and arrange the fruit on top.

Blau x


Recipe via http://australianfood.about.com

Sweet, for your cheeks

Having an other half who's ceoliac means we have been left behind in the cupcake trends. Until we stumbled upon Sweetcheeks, who have a weekly stall at Sunday Upmarket on Brick Lane. Not only are they beautiful, they are, unlike alot of gluten free baking, really really yummy. Like all who eat wheat free, when you get your hands on something good, it's the most exciting thing ever and the girls on the stand were just as enthusiastic. Which was nice.

Check 'em out.

Ezzie x

Red Velvet Cupcakes

So 2011 is going to be the year that I master baking! This might be an ambitious first project but I have my taste buds set on making red velvet cupcakes! It's quite impossible to walk around Soho London without popping into Hummingbird for one of these delicious treats, I'll even admit to having had one for breakfast once. Luckily I've found this video on YouTube to make my first attempt a little easier.

Wish me luck!

Blau x