Two Words: Chocolate Cupcakes

Royal icing is so deceptively soft and voluptuous when first made. It always sort of surprises me that it hardens up in a very useful way. This particular batch was lavender, one of my favourite colours. And then there were cupcakes... devil's foodcake chocolate cupcakes! And there will be more this week and then a fortnight from now. I love making them. But I don't eat them. I'm gluten free and don't have a sweet tooth. Dark chocolate is my only sweet weakness. And baking is my zen.

This is GOOD

I didn't expect this to taste so good. It tastes and smells of two things: chocolate... and Guinness. And the combination is fantastic! Nothing better for a Christmas stocking or two (including mine please!)

I Love Great Packaging (and Chocolate)

New Pantry Find

Gee, thanks Soma. It's not enough that practically everything in your store is the most delicious thing in the whole world and now it's gelato season. Okay, that doesn't make sense, but in a way it does. But... you had to go ahead and make this, didn't you? It's like crack cocaine for chocolate addicts. It's called Majoun and a little googling reveals that the original Majoun consisted of cannabis mixed with dried fruits, nuts and spices. Sort of an old world pot brownie?

Majoun means "love potion" in Arabic.

Well, Soma's Majoun is hazelnut butter with cocoa nibs. Mmmmmmm. Tempted to crawl into bed with this... and a spoon.

Just kidding.

No I'm not.

New Pantry Items

Summer salads? You're about to be bathed and moisturized most indulgently. A recent gift bag included the organic Monasterio olive oil, from Navarra. I won't be cooking with it... it will be eked out with great pleasure as is. Olive & Olives, from which the gift bag was purchased, has a website, which describes the oil like this:

Produced by the masters of Hacienda Queiles, Monasterio ... is a blend of arbequina and arroniz olives which are a local variety. This olive oil is produced for the Monastery of ''Cistercience de Tulebras" and the result of hard work between the Mother Superior and the producers of Hacienda Queiles. 

It's very smooth and almost creamy.

The balsamic vinegar, Leonardi Oro Nobile, is from Modena, and is also delicate... the first vinegar I've actively liked, and I'm being active with it! It has a touch of sweetness which renders the temptation to add a drop of maple syrup or honey to my salad dressing unnecessary.

The gifter, knowing me well, included the chocolate pearls. Seriously. Drool cup. STAT. Thank you!

My treasure box (gift from Barbara) has been emptied, the contents are now well sealed in the fridge (moisture and chocolate don't mix well). Until the fall, there will be less chocolate consumption. It just never seems like something I want to eat in the summer. Oh, unless it's in frozen, creamy form. Heh heh.

Alchemy

Cream + chocolate + butter + scotch. I'll never tire of home-made truffles.

Beautiful Walk

My friend B suggested a walk along Duffins Creek in the Greenwood Conservation Area. The weather forecast had called for blazing sun. What we got was an overcast day with no wind. The colours and light were soft. There were many beautiful things to soak up:

... soft buds...





... whorled bark like the surface of a raked Japanese garden... I see a face in the tree, do you? Two eyes, a sticky-out nose and then it's also sticking its tongue out!









... the chartreuse of baby trees...






... a tree whose random roots made it look like a baby brontosaurus... see the front legs?



... silvery grasses...



 ... we've had a lot of precipitation this spring, and the creek was running swiftly...





... leaves, bark, slopes, trees, beautiful moss...















... a stunning view. Imagine it in a month... or in the fall..



... who let in the crazy tree hugger?



... cracked ice sheet...



... good news...



Not only is B full of great ideas, she also surprises you at the end of a long walk with a picnic of piping hot tea, cookies, chips and grilled cheese sandwiches. AND... a drop in on the way home to the Lindt chocolate outlet (I stocked up). Thanks, B!

This Year's Big Cake Project - Final

The big cake, of course, wasn't a big cake at all. It was over 100 cupcakes, divided up by display to honour three different William Morris walllpaper patterns. You can read more about the plan here. The event was at University College on the University of Toronto campus. Laura and James's display was so striking. Someone said it looked like the William Morris cupcakes had been put into a Frank Lloyd Wright house. I sort of see that. It went well, and we're done for another year. Of course... plans are already afoot for next year's project. Thanks, J and L!

This Year's Big Cake Project, Part Three (if you Count my Blethering)

Day two of the cupcake project... This was baking and finessing of decorations.

I used most of the three jars of Soma cocoa powder. It's deep, dark and mysterious. And I was mesmerized as I sifted. Or maybe that was the shiny bowl. Or lack of sleep. Anyway, I was happy. Finding four opened bags of flour in my baking cupboard made me wonder what the hell I get up to sometimes. You see James's hand as he brought the cupcake toppers to life with painted detail.

The cupcakes were baked in one day (120 of them). Then ganached (Callebaut 51% for a change) and then frosted. I barely had room for them.

The final result will be posted tomorrow.

Rocky Road Brownies

Where a young mother of a (super adorable) one-year-old finds the time to do this sort of thing, I don't know. But she did, and it was a very enjoyable Christmas offering.

My only tip would be, place the marshmallows within the areas you intend to cut, so your knife doesn't come in contact with the gooeyness. It made cutting them a bit of a massacre, so there are no pictures of the finished brownies. But... yummmmm.

Little Work Helper

I'm resisting the chocolate stored inside. But I know it's there in my desk at work. I know...

A Trifling Resolution

Yes, I made a resolution. A January 13 one. Starting tomorrow morning I will wake up at 6 and do a workout before work. Yep. That's it. I'm resolved.

Oh, and here was New Year's trifle, courtesy of the world's best and most beauteous mother. Her classic recipe was topped with Godive chocolate pearls and I, in my vulgar way, plopped a dark Lindor ball in the middle. Heaven in a bowl. Pass the spoon. The BIG spoon.

Recent Photos: Food and Drink

I visited my parents for the opening ceremonies of the Olympics (they were part barmy, part brilliant, very British), for which my father served cucumber sandwiches and Prosecco... I seem to recall.

 

 Running into my neighbour, I swapped her an Ontario peach for an Ontario tomato.

 

I introduced someone to the joys of Soma's Mayan Drink of the Gods... a favourite on this blog.

 

 Charcuterie at Trattoria Nervosa, another blog favourite.

 

A barbeque at the home of the Armenians delivered the most incredibly tender ribs, followed by figs from an Armenan market, the tenderest, most succulent, sexy figs ever.

 For Diner en Blanc, I poached salmon in white wine and lemon, served with asparagus baked in phyllo and brushed (before baking) with melted butter, poppy seeds and sesame seeds. Also, a tomato salad of local heirlooms, and then crême fraiche mixed with lemon zest, juice and fresh dill. (No piccie survives of the keylime pie).

It wor` good, it wor.