Best Brownies straight from Hershey’s kitchen!!

5 Comments 24 Dec 2009 In: Bake, baking

I have been thinking to bake brownies for a long long time. But really didnt get th eperfect easy recipe or sometimes i’ll be short of some ingredient.. then i was thiking why not just try Hershey’s kitchens And yes i got the perfect recipe there.

These brownies are soft and like a chocolate cake when you taste them straight from oven but are really really moist and a real brownie when they are cold. I liked them more the next day. I doubles the recipe as i was taking this to a friends house. And i really lost count how much my dear son ate out of those! This is a must try i strongly recommend!

I made only the brownie did’nt try the frosting as i was afraid it might run by the time i reach my friends place.

You’ll need

  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, melted
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup chopped nuts(optional)
  • CREAMY BROWNIE FROSTING(recipe follows)
How to proceed
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 9-inch square baking pan.

2. Stir together butter, sugar and vanilla in bowl. Add eggs; beat well with spoon. Stir together flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; gradually add to egg mixture, beating until well blended. Stir in nuts, if desired. Spread batter evenly in prepared pan.

3. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from sides of pan. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Prepare CREAMY BROWNIE FROSTING; spread over brownies. Cut into squares. About 16 brownies.

CREAMY BROWNIE FROSTING

3 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
3 tablespoons HERSHEY’S Cocoa
1 tablespoon light corn syrup or honey
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup powdered sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons milk

Beat butter, cocoa, corn syrup and vanilla in small bowl until blended. Add powdered sugar and milk; beat to spreading consistency. About 1 cup frosting.

My brownies goes to Tea Time Snack Event
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Raspberry Buttermilk Cake

5 Comments 21 Nov 2009 In: baking, cakes, sweet
1 cup (130 grams) all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon (2 grams) baking powder
1/2 teaspoon (2 grams) baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 stick (56 grams) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup (146 grams) plus 1 1/2 tablespoons (22 grams) sugar, divided
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest (optional)
1 large (57 grams) egg
1/2 cup well-shaken buttermilk
1 cup fresh raspberries (about 5 oz)
Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in middle. Butter and flour a 9-inch round cake pan.
Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside. In a larger bowl, beat butter and 2/3 cup (146 grams) sugar with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about two minutes, then beat in vanilla and zest, if using. Add egg and beat well.
At low speed, mix in flour mixture in three batches, alternating with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour, and mixing until just combined.Spoon batter into cake pan, smoothing top. Scatter (see Note) raspberries evenly over top and sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons (22 grams) sugar.
Bake until cake is golden and a wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool in pan 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack and cool to warm, 10 to 15 minutes more. Invert onto a plate.
[Baking time updated, shortened, after so many of you concurred that this cake bakes crazy quickly.]
Note: Directions like “scatter” always scare me. Where’s the science? Here’s what my neuroses taught us: the ones that were downward were almost all swallowed by the batter. The “o” ones stayed empty, like cups. Both were delicious.
Make your own buttermilk: No need to buy buttermilk especially for this or any recipe. Add one teaspoon tablespoon [updated, as an astute reader pointed out that the larger amount is more common] of vinegar or lemon juice to one cup of milk and let it sit until it clabbers, about 10 minutes. Voila, butt

raspberry buttermilk cake

If anyone asks me what will i cook for myself the answer anytime would be cakes! or something baked. i reallly love the smell spreading in my kitchen. When i saw this first in Smitten Kitchen i wanted to make it right away. I love raspberries the sour taste mixed with the sweetness of the cake. But unfortunately all berries are very expensive in Singapore :(  I used frozen this time but i think next time i’ll try it with fresh. I made this cake only for me but rest of my family finished it! LOL! A real hit and i think i’ll make this more often.

Recipe from Smitten Kitchen

1 cup (130 grams) all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon (2 grams) baking powder

1/2 teaspoon (2 grams) baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 stick (56 grams) unsalted butter, softened

2/3 cup (146 grams) plus 1 1/2 tablespoons (22 grams) sugar, divided

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest (optional)

1 large (57 grams) egg

1/2 cup well-shaken buttermilk**

1 cup fresh raspberries (about 5 oz) (i used frozen and thawed it to room temp.)

raspberry buttermilk cake2

Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in middle. Butter and flour a 9-inch round cake pan.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside. In a larger bowl, beat butter and 2/3 cup (146 grams) sugar with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about two minutes, then beat in vanilla and zest, if using. Add egg and beat well.

At low speed, mix in flour mixture in three batches, alternating with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour, and mixing until just combined.Spoon batter into cake pan, smoothing top. Scatter (see Note) raspberries evenly over top and sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons (22 grams) sugar.

Bake until cake is golden and a wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool in pan 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack and cool to warm, 10 to 15 minutes more. Invert onto a plate.

** Make your own buttermilk:  Add one tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to one cup of milk and let it sit for about 10 minutes.

My post goes to Cooking for Yourself Event

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Apple Crumb Cake

2 Comments 13 Apr 2009 In: apple, baking, cakes

I found this wonderful website The Purple Foodie few days back and when i revisited it today i came across this yummilicious recipe of Apple Crumb Cake. And i wanted to make it right away. I had all the ingredients at home except for baking powder. So i waited till evening to go out with my kids to our near by NTUC Fairprice to buy it.
We had a nice walk and i explained to my kiddos about the cake on the way! My daughter was all excited about it especially when i explained about the topping!!! She had seen only the frosting as a topping on the cake but not something like this which has to be baked with the cake! My son on the other hand was not at all interested about it!! LOL!! i guess its hard to impress a almost 3 yr old without a chocolate ingredient! :D
This cake is for my dear daughter and my DH who loves anything with apples and cinnamon. And DS… chocolate chip cookies are coming ur way soon honey! :)
here goes the original recipe..
Crumb topping:
5 tbsp butter, cold
¼ cup sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar
½ cup flour
¼ tsp salt
½ cup walnut, chopped
For the cake:
1 large apple, peeled, cored and diced
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp cinnamon, ground
2/3 cup sugar
8 tbsp butter (100g)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ cup yogurt
Making the crumb topping:
Mix together all the ingredients except the walnuts. You could do this either manually (using a fork or a pastry blender) or pulse it in a food processor. Next, stir in the nuts. Refrigerate until needed.
Making the cake:
Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C. Butter an 8 inch square or circular pan.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
In a large bowl, beat the sugar and the butter with a hand mixer until light and airy, about 3 minutes.
Add the eggs one at a time, beating for a minute after each addition.
Reduce the speed now and add the flour in 3 parts and yogurt in 2 parts alternately; starting and ending with flour.
You will have a very thick batter. Stir in the chopped apples.
Transfer the batter in the buttered pan and even out the top with a spatula.
Get the crumb topping out of the fridge and break it apart using a fork. Then sprinkle it over the batter.
Bake for 50-60 minutes or until the crumbs are golden and a skewer comes out clean.
I made some changes in the original recipe

For the crumb toping i reduced the white sugar to 2 tbsp. And for the cake i added 1/3 brown sugar and 1/3 white sugar.
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Zebra cake

0 Comments 4 Apr 2009 In: baking, cakes, design cakes

When i saw this cake for the first time in Farida’s blog i already fell in love with it!! :) it was something so different and unique!!! If i saw this in a bakery or somewhr else i wouldnt even imagine that i can also bake something like this!

Luckily i had all the ingredients at home and everything came out wonderful.. I followed the recipe exactly with no changes. Its really a big cake. I made this in Silicon round cakepan that i just brought. im slowly trying to replace all my baking pans to Silicon.
I took this to a kitty party and evertbody raved about it.

Please note that.. i made this in an electric oven.. one of my friend made the same thing in a microwave/convection oven and it didnt come out as the same pattern, it turned out to be a Marble cake!
INGREDIENTS

4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup (8 oz / 250 g) granulated sugar
1 cup (8 fl oz / 250 ml) milk, at room temperature
1 cup (8 fl oz / 250 ml) oil (corn, vegetable or canola is fine)
2 cups (10 oz / 300 g) all-purpose flour
1/3 teaspoon vanilla powder
1 tablespoon (equals 3 teaspoons) baking powder (if not available, substitute with 1 teaspoon baking soda)
2 tablespoons dark cocoa powder (make sure it is not very bitter) such as Dutch-processed (A word of caution: Sometimes I use Hershey’s natural unsweetened cocoa, but since it is BITTER it takes away from the sweetness of the cake, so it may not be your best choice if you want a sweeter cake. Also Remember! Dark zebra patterns won’t stand out with light cocoa powder)

You’ll also need: mixing bowls, electric mixer or wire whisk, 9 inch (23 cm) non-stick round cake pan.

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine eggs and sugar. Using a hand-held electric mixer or wire whisk beat until the mixture is creamy and light in color

2. Add milk and oil, and continue beating until well blended.

3. In a separate bowl, combine and mix flour, vanilla powder and baking powder. Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and beat just until the batter is smooth and the dry ingredients are thoroughly incorporated.  (DO NOT OVERBEAT to prevent air pockets from forming in the batter.

4. Divide the mixture into 2 equal portions. Keep one portion plain. Add cocoa powder into another and mix well.

5. Preheat the oven to 350F (180C).

6. Lightly grease the pan with oil. If you don’t have non-stick baking pan, grease whatever pan you have then line it with parchment paper (baking paper).

7. The most important part is assembling the cake batter in a baking pan. This is what you do. Scoop 3 heaped tablespoons of plain batter (you can also use a ladle that would hold 3 tablespoons) into the middle of the baking pan. Then scoop 3 tablespoons of cocoa batter and pour it in the center on top of the plain batter. IMPORTANT! Do not stop and wait until the previous batter spreads – KEEP GOING! Do not spread the batter or tilt the pan to distribute the mixture. It will spread by itself and fill the pan gradually. Continue alternating the batters until you finish them. The pictures below will guide you through.
8. Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes. Do not open the oven door at least the first 20 minutes or the cake will shrink and will not rise. To check if the cake is ready, insert a toothpick into the center. It should come out clean when ready. Remove from the oven. Immediately run a small thin knife around the inside of the pan to loosen the cake, then invert the cake onto a cooking rack. Turn the cake back over and let cool. You can sprinkle the top of the cake with some powdered (confectioner’s) sugar or leave it plain.

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Carrot (& Zucchini) cake

3 Comments 1 Mar 2009 In: baking, cakes

I made this carrot cake 3 times before and it really turned yummy.. the only thing i changed in the recipe was reduced the sugar to 1 cup.. And i added the apple sauce too.

Then one day i came across this recipe of Carrot-Zucchini Cake
I was in the middle of the first Carrot cake recipe when i got the second one! So i just grated 1/2 cup skinned zucchini and reduced the carrot to 2 cups. Also reduced the sugar to 1 cup. Also i didnt add apple sauce this time because i thought Zucchinis have a high water content and it will help to keep the cake moist.
At the end.. both the recipies were delicious!
I made the cake in 2 loaf pans and took one to my friend Shebi’s house where we were having a girls party! Everyone loved it!!
The other loaf was almost finished by my kids and DH! Luckily i had one slice left to take a pic!! LOLs!
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Marble cakes and cupcakes!

0 Comments 19 Feb 2009 In: baking, cakes, chocolate, Kids

I have been baking and grilling a lot now a days but unfortunately my camera is dead and my camera phone is not so good in taking pics.. By the time i wait for my hubby to come home to take a pic from his iPhone half of the thing is eaten by mu kids and then i think ok may be i’ll post this next time… i have a lot of drafts and im wondering when im going to post all of this!!!

today my daughter told me lets make a cake together! Its really hard to resist a almost 5 yr old! :D
So i decided to make my first marble cake from scratch! i have been baking a lot from www.Allrecipes.com so i decided to go there and search for this recipe. And i think this is the perfect recipe
then she said she wants cup cakes.. So with 3/4th of the batter i made a marble pound cake and the rest i made marble cup cakes.. i even mixed a little more cocoa pwdr in one or 2 cupcakes to make it chocolate cup cakes and some into plain white cup cake.

I followed the recipe exactly but reduced the flour by 1/2 cup as some of the reviewers suggested but kept everything else the same.
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