Minggu, 30 September 2012

How to Turn Any Recipe Into the Best Chocolate Cupcake Recipe


Can you remember the last time you sank your teeth into a great cocoa cupcake that left you feeling like you tasted a piece of heaven, and you wished to find the best chocolate cupcake recipe so you could relive that experience whenever you wanted?


Well the first step would be to look for the best chocolate cupcake recipe, and that make take some searching and testing before you find the best one. But did you know that a great cocoa cupcake can be made just by taking a basic recipe and tweaking it such that you get the best chocolate cupcake recipe?

Yes, it's possible indeed, and I can bear testament to that.

While I can't reveal my secret recipe to you, I sure can give the pointers on how to get the best chocolate cupcake recipe.

Of course, my tips won't work for everyone since different people will have different definitions of the best chocolate cupcake recipe.

In any case, use these tips to achieve that. Use what you want, and drop those you don't want.

Tip 1 - Swap Fine or Caster Sugar For Dark Brown Sugar

Dark brown sugar contains molasses, and that make the sugar moist and nice. And you'll notice its moist property when you feel it with your bare hands. It melts and has a wet touch to it.

So if you swap sugar or caster sugar for dark brown sugar, you'll get chocolate cupcakes that are moist, nice and more fragrant than usual.

Tip 2 - Swap Milk for Buttermilk

For those who don't know what buttermilk is, it's like watery yogurt, and it has great properties for baking cakes and cupcakes alike. You should be able to find it at major supermarkets in the chilled section.

Or if you could only find the powdered version, follow the instructions on the label on how to use buttermilk powder to turn into a buttermilk substitute.

Milk in cupcake recipes only adds flavour to the cupcakes, but buttermilk will make the cupcakes really moist and soft. And that's the property of a great cocoa cupcake.

Tip 3 - Bake In A Steam Oven

With steaming included, the cupcakes don't dry out, and your cupcakes will become moist in the process.

And in case you don't have a steam oven, you can always bake your cupcakes in a water bath. That's as good as having a steam oven.

Tip 4 - Add Chocolate Chips on the Top

Chocolate chips will melt under the heat of the oven, and that will help to enhance the melt in the mouth feeling you get from the best chocolate cupcake recipe.

And know this. Not all chocolate chips are made equal, and you'll want to find the best one that will give you this effect.

Tip 5 - Pipe Chocolate Ganache into the Cupcake Centers

Do this only after your cupcakes have cooled down.

By using a piping bag with a piping tip, poke it right to the centre of your cooled cupcakes and pipe in chocolate ganache.

And that's how the great cocoa cupcakes give you the nice melted feeling in your mouth.

Also, note that you don't have to pipe too much. Piping a little will already achieve that effect.

As you can see, all these tips for the best chocolate cupcake recipe are recipe independent, and will work to enhance any recipes out there. Give them a try to believe it.

Rabu, 12 September 2012

Chocolates - The Extraordinary Delight for Your Taste Buds!


What are the types of Chocolates?


There are different types of chocolates that we may not even know. Common types are dark, milk and white chocolates. Other varieties are semisweet, bittersweet and couverture chocolates. Each of these chocolates is made from different ingredients.

What are they made from?

The main ingredient of chocolate is cocoa beans. These cocoa beans contain cocoa pods - a fruit filled sweet, white pulp that helps in making chocolate. Other ingredients include cocoa butter, milk, sugar and flavoring agents. All these ingredients are cooked together and they undergo some production stages to deliver rich, smooth and creamy chocoalte bars.

What are the other ingredients added to them?

For enhanced taste, sometimes flavors like vanilla, mint, coffee, orange, cherry, cinnamon and more are added to chocolates. Now-a-days, most of the chocolate bars contain nuts, dried fruits, peanuts, caramel and crisped rice. These ingredients not only delight your taste buds, but also add to the nutritional value.

What are the interesting facts about chocolates?

Did you know? Swiss has the world's largest consumers of chocolate. Each person consumes 22 pounds of chocolate per year. Other European countries including Austria, Germany, Ireland and Norway have the highest chocolate consumers. Approximately, more than 7 billion chocolate chips are consumed annually. Chocolate manufacturers use 20 percent of the world's peanut resources and 40 percent of the world's almond resources. In 2000, the biggest bar of chocolate was created in Turin - a city in Italy. It weighed 5,026 pounds. The shelf life of a chocolate bar is one year, if you keep it refrigerated. Chocolates contain heart protective antioxidants called phenolics that help prevent bad cholesterol. Specifically, dark chocolates are rich in antioxidants and possess anti-cancer properties.

What you can do with chocolates, chocolate chips, sprinkles and flakes?

Chocolate chips are used in biscuits, cookies, pancakes, waffles, cakes, pudding, muffins, pies and other types of pastries for added flavor and taste. You can use sprinkles or vermicelli to decorate desserts such as ice cream, cupcakes, puddings, doughnuts and more. Flakes are also used for decorative purposes and they add perfect texture and look to your finished products. To make an occasion very special, you can make different recipes using chocolates. Most famous recipes include chocolate cake, brownies, icing, frosting, mousse, truffle bars and much more.