Oreo & Caramel Cheesecake

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I tasted a delicious pudding on the weekend which I was desperate to recreate. However this is a slight cheat as it's not really a cheesecake in the traditional sense.

Oreo & Caramel Cheesecake

Oreo & Caramel Cheesecake

  • Makes: 8 inch cake serving 8-10 (depends how big a slice you want!)
  • Preparation time: 30 minutes
  • Cooking time: caramel – 2o minutes
  • Setting time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

  • For the biscuit base:
    • 300g bourbon biscuits
    • 70g butter
  • For the caramel:
    • 200g condensed milk
    • 100g light brown sugar
    • 100g butter
  • For the filling:
    • vanilla instant-whip dessert (i.e. Angel Delight)
    • chocolate instant-whip dessert (i.e. Angel Delight)
    • 2 tablespoons of cream cheese
    • 4-5 Oreo cookies
  1. Break up the bourbon biscuits into fine crumbs (I blitzed them in a food processor).
  2. Melt the 70g butter in a saucepan and add the bourbon crumbs.
  3. Transfer mixture into a 8inch flan tin (for ease I used one with a removable base and inserted a cake liner too) and press down firmly all over to compress the mixture.
  4. Place in the fridge to cool and set for twenty minutes.
  5. Melt 100g butter in a pan and add 100g light brown sugar to dissolve. Pour in the condensed milk and raise the temperature very gently until it starts to simmer. Keep the temperature low and stir continuously for around twenty minutes until brown.
  6. Once thickened, pour over the set base and transfer to the fridge to set for twenty minutes.
  7. Mix the two packets of instant-whip desserts separately, use two-thirds of the milk that it suggests on the packet (this will help with the firmness of the filling). Add one tablespoon of cream cheese to each mixture.
  8. Spoon the two different mixtures over the base alternating into a pattern, then stir them through loosely to create a marbled effect. Place in the fridge to set for twenty minutes.
  9. Sprinkle the crushed Oreo cookies over the top of the dessert and serve immediately.

Oreo & Caramel Cheesecake

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Linking to Recipe Of The Week, Share Your Stuff Tuesdays and Tasty Tuesdays

Poached Pear Cupcakes

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I'm a big fan of the delicate taste of pears, and while I don't particularly like the texture of a raw pear, I do enjoy seeing how creative I can be with them in my cooking.

Poached Pear Cupcakes

Makes: 12
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
 
  • 1 litre/1¾ pints water
  • 200g/7oz granulated sugar
  • 3 small pears, peeled, quartered and cored
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 75g/2¾oz plain flour
  • 70g/2½oz ground almonds
  • 1tsp baking powder
  • ¼tsp salt
  • 115g/4oz unsalted butter, softened
  • 200g/7oz caster sugar
  • 1tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 1 eggs
  • 4tbsp double cream

Frosting & Decoration:

  • 150g/5½oz icing sugar
  • 225g/8oz unsalted butter
  • 1tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 1tsp ground cinnamon
  1. Bring the water and granulated sugar to the boil in a saucepan. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Add the pears and cinnamon stick and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the pears and set aside to cool, do NOT dispose of the liquid. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4 and line a 12 hole cupcake tin with paper cases.
  2. Beat the butter and caster sugar in a bowl until pale and fluff, add the vanilla bean paste and eggs one at a time beating after each addition. Add a little flour if the eggs start to curdle. Sift in half the flour and the cream, beat until well incorporated. Add the remaining flour, ground almonds, baking powder and salt and mix through well.
  3. Spoon the batter into the paper cases and put a pear quarter into each. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes until risen and golden. Leave to cool in the tin for 1-2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
  4. Sift the icing sugar into a bowl with the unsalted butter, and stir together. Add the vanilla bean paste and cinnamon, and beat until combined. Spoon the frosting into a piping bag with a star-shaped tip, and pipe onto the cupcakes.
  5. Reduce the poaching liquid down until it produces a sticky and slightly runny syrup, drizzle over the top of the cupcakes.

Poached Pear Cupcakes

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This recipe comes from Make, Bake, Cupcake: The Recipe Book, which is a wonderful recipe book full of imaginative cupcake ideas for bored bakers. My personal favourites are the White Russian, Mudslide, Limoncello, Caramel Appletini, and Salted Caramel cupcakes. With easy recipes, colourful photography, and cute illustrations throughout, the book is a joy to use. I particularly like the way that the chapters are easy to find with cut out cupcakes as the markers.

Make, Bake, Cupcake: The Recipe Book is published by Parragon Books with an RRP £14.00 but is currently £5.00 on Amazon.

I was sent this product for the purpose of review, my opinion is honest and unbiased.

Linked to Recipe Of The Week, Tasty Tuesdays and Share Your Stuff Tuesdays.

Espresso Cupcakes & Cappuccino Frosting

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I am a big fan of coffee flavours, but not actually of the hot drink. I adore coffee ice-cream, frappuccinos and flavoured chocolates but have a real aversion to it as a warm liquid. However, there is always room for coffee cake!

Espresso Cupcakes with Cappuccino Frosting

Espresso Cupcakes with Cappuccino Frosting

  • Makes: 12
  • Preparation time: 10 minutes & 10 minutes for frosting
  • Cooking time: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients:

  • Cakes:
    • 4oz/120g self-raising flour
    • 4oz/120g caster sugar
    • 4oz/120g butter
    • 2 eggs
    • 1tsp vanilla bean paste
    • 1tbsp vanilla yoghurt
    • 1 shot of espresso
    • 1tsp espresso/coffee powder
  • buttercream:
    • 5oz/140g butter, softened
    • 10oz/280g icing sugar
    • 1-2 tbsp milk
    • 1tsp espresso powder
    • chocolate spread
    • cappuccino cream wafer rolls
  1. Cream the butter and caster sugar together until light and fluffy.
  2. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla extract, add a little flour if the mixture starts to curdle.
  3. Sift the flour in with and mix thoroughly.
  4. Stir through the vanilla yoghurt and espresso shot gently.
  5. Fold in the coffee powder.
  6. Divide into cake cases and cook in a preheated oven (200°C/Gas Mask 6) for 12-15 minutes.
  7. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
  8. Mix the buttercream, but before transferring to a piping bag with a star nozzle, smear chocolate spread around the outside of the bag. When the buttercream is piped, there will be a gentle hint of chocolate in the topping.
  9. Break a section of cappuccino cream wafer roll and place on the top of the buttercream.

Espresso Cupcakes with Cappuccino Frosting

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Tasty Tuesdays on HonestMum.com

Pear & White Chocolate Cupcakes

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I absolutely love the flavour of pears, especially lightly cooked, but am not a huge fan of them uncooked as the texture is often too gritty for me. As I had a batch that were 'on the turn', I decided to whip up some cupcakes which would make good use of them.

Pear & White Chocolate Cupcakes

Ingredients:

  • 4oz self-raising flour
  • 4oz caster sugar
  • 4oz butter
  • 2 eggs
  • 1tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 1tbsp vanilla yoghurt
  • 1 pear, peeled and chopped
  • white chocolate drops
  • buttercream
  • chocolate spread
  • white chocolate
  1. Cream the butter and caster sugar together until light and fluffy.
  2. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla extract, add a little flour if the mixture starts to curdle.
  3. Sift the flour in and mix thoroughly.
  4. Stir through the vanilla yoghurt gently.
  5. Divide into cake cases and cook in a preheated oven (200°C/Gas Mask 6) for 12-15 minutes.
  6. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
  7. Mix the buttercream, but before transferring to a piping bag with a star nozzle, smear chocolate spread around the outside of the bag. When the buttercream is piped, there will be a gentle hint of chocolate in the topping.
  8. Grate white chocolate and sprinkle over the top of the buttercream.

I'm sure that more than one is allowed, there is fruit in it after all?

Pear & White Chocolate Cupcakes
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Days 244-250 of Project 365

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244-250 of 365

244. Eruption (Following our science exploration activity the previous week, The Boy perfectly replicated how to make a volcano independently. We're now out of vinegar as he did it quite a few times. The blue lava wasn't quite as effective!)

245. Flinger (After I finished my first day back at work, I took The Boy down to one of the local beaches for some plopping good fun, our last bit of freedom before school started the next day.)

246. First Day (I know I've used this elsewhere, but what else could I have for today; his first day of school.)

247. Rainbow House (He came home with this painting that he'd done the previous day in school after listening to the story of Winnie the Witch who painted her house different colours.)

248. Xylophone (Another painting, I suspect there may be a few of these. I was incredibly impressed when he told me it was a xylophone; he's even got the keys different lengths and the pegs to hold them on!)

249. Swing (An exhausted little boy after his first week in school, he could barely manage to swing himself. Two minutes later, just as I'd taken my camera in out the way, he fell off backwards and nearly winded himself. Cuddles and Peppa Pig soon solved the problem though.)

250. Mix (Whipping up a birthday cake for Grandad who came over for a birthday tea. )

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TheBoyandMe's 365 Linky

Christmas Bakewell Tarts

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I wanted to try a different version of an old favourite combining different elements of several cakes that are sumptuous and decadent: the frangipance of bakewell tarts, the richness of the currant mix in mince pies and the melted marzipan inside a Simnel cake. With those in mind, I've created my own Christmas Bakewell Tarts.

Ingredients:

  • Shortcrust pastry:
    • 125g/4oz plain flour
    • pinch of salt
    • 55g/2oz butter, cubed
    • 30-45ml/2-3 tbsp cold water
    • 2oz ground almonds
    • 1oz caster sugar
  • currants, raisins and cherries roughly chopped in a food processor for thirty seconds (I'm using this instead of mincemeat as The Boy doesn't like that)
  • marzipan

  1. Make the shortcrust pastry in the traditional way (rub butter, flour, salt, sugar and almonds together, then add a few drops of water at a time until it binds together).
  2. Cut out circles and place them into a small muffin tin. Trim off the excess pastry and put a layer of baking beads over the base and cook for 8 minutes at 180°C.
  3. While this is blind-baking in the oven, make the frangipane mix.
  4. Cream the sugar and butter, add the eggs, mix in the flour and ground almonds, with a teaspoon of almond essence. Mix thoroughly.
  5. Once the tart cases have cooked, remove the baking beads carefully (they're hot!) and place a small circle of marzipan in each one.
  6. Place a teaspoon of currant mix on top, and then put a spoonful of frangipane mix on the top of each tart case.
  7. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 180°C until a skewer/knife comes out clean.
  8. Sift icing sugar over the top.

mince pies

For a change I thought I'd video this cooking session. Mainly because cooking with a three year old is fun and I wanted to share that.

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Linking up to Recipe of The Week

Oreo Cookie Cupcakes

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There are quite a few recipes out there that involve putting a whole Oreo cookie into each cake case, mine doesn't and I think allows for the taste and texture to vary while eating each cake.

There are two specific things that I've added to this standard cake recipe to make it taste delicious; vanilla bean paste and vanilla yoghurt.

Ingredients:

  • 4oz butter
  • 4oz caster sugar
  • 4oz self-raising flour
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tbsp fat free vanilla yoghurt
  • 1tbsp vanilla bean paste
  • 10 Oreo cookies, chopped roughly
  • icing sugar, soft butter, vanilla bean paste and white chocolate for the buttercream.

Oreo recipes

Method:

  1. Cream the butter and sugar.
  2. Mix in the eggs, adding a little flour if it starts to curdle. Add the remainder of the flour.
  3. Whisk in the yoghurt and vanilla bean paste.
  4. With a spatula or wooden spoon, slowly stir in the chopped Oreo cookies so that they don't break up any smaller.
  5. Spoon into cake cases (this made twelve) and cook on 180 for 15-20 minutes.
  6. Leave on a wire rack to cool.
  7. To make buttercream you'll need double the amount of icing sugar as butter. I also added half a bar of white chocolate and two teaspoons of vanilla bean paste. Add more icing sugar if needed, to stiffen the mixture.

Oreo recipes

I was sent the Nielsen-Massey vanilla bean paste to test. So much easier to use than vanilla beans and more authentic than essence. I thoroughly recommend it. The recipe is my own and unbiased.

Linking up to Foodie Foto Friday

The Novelty Of Birthday Cakes

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So this week I've made two birthday cakes. And we're not talking about round sponges with some chocolate and sprinkles on top, we're talking themed cakes.

This week, I've made a sandcastle cake for The Boy's actual birthday on Tuesday, and for his birthday party day today he had a Peppa Pig car cake.

Thank God for cake moulds hey? I've used one for both cakes: one was a silicon mould from Aldi; the other was a metal, Wilton mould borrowed from the cake-loving Mummy Mishaps. They seem to make everything so much easier and as a result, even the most artistically-lacking parent can whip up an extravaganza for their little ones with the aid of some dolly mixtures and a liquorice allsort or two.

Having made a madeira sponge for the Sandcastle cake, I discovered that it was a little dry and so I decided to add in some natural yoghurt (which is a trick I've learnt from the aforementioned Mummy Mishaps) which makes the cake lighter and more fluffy. I used this gem from Seasider Clare again, and despite the minor realisation that I hadn't made enough and needed to whip another 2 egg mixture. Two hours in the oven and an overnight cooling, saw me decorating it this morning.

After carving out the area for Peppa and family to sit in, I covered it in the appropriate icing sourced from a local cake suppliers using this image as my reference point. I used some wafer flowers on the grass and ended up with this cake which I am really rather proud of. It also tasted a damn sight nicer than the other day, the yoghurt worked a treat.

I have had great fun planning The Boy's cakes over the past few weeks, it's one of those mummy things that I've looked forward to and relish every stressful, floury moment of it. I haven't quite decided on next year's cake yet, but there is a pirate ship mould on top of the fridge that's been sending me distress signals for the past two years.

If you've got a novelty birthday cake that you'd like to share, please add it to the linky below.

 

Coffee Cupcakes

by 4 Comments

As we haven't made any cakes in a while and the weather is horrendous, The Boy and I have just been baking.

Coffee Cupcakes

Ingredients:

  • 110g self-raising flour
  • 1tsp baking powder
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 100g Stork Baking Liquid*
  • 2 eggs
  • 3 tsp of espresso powder dissolved in a small amount of hot water.
  1. Cream the caster sugar and Stork Baking Liquid together. As the 'butter' is already a liquid, it is far easier to mix, especially for little ones. There's also a handy measuring marker down the side of the bottle for easy dispensing.
  2. Mix in the egg, add a little flour if it starts to curdle. Mine always curdles; this time? It didn't.
  3. Add the remaining flour and baking powder and mix.
  4. Stir in the coffee mixture. (I added 10g more flour to counter this additional liquid).
  5. Bake for 14 minutes on 180°C.
  6. Top with coffee flavoured buttercream (2 tsp of coffee added to a basic recipe. NB: I found that I needed a bit more than 1/4 Stork Baking Liquid to a bit less than 3/4 icing sugar. Incidentally, it is the best buttercream that I have ever made; smooth, creamy and the icing sugar didn't go everywhere.)
  7. Eat and enjoy!

I was sent the product marked * for the purpose of trial. My opinion (that it's really easy to use and made the cakes tasty and light) is honest and unbiased.

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