Cappuccino Cupcakes

Ingredients:
Makes 12 cupcakes
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 cup cake flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon espresso powder (We used instant coffee powder)
3/4 cup whole milk
1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temp.
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract


Chocolate buttercream frosting
Makes enough for 12 cupcakes
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temp.
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1 3/4 cups confectioner’s sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Procedure:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.

2. Line 12 muffin tin cups with cupcake liners. (Tim could easily do this :) ).

3. Stir chocolate in a double boiler over low heat, until just melted. Remove from heat and set aside.

4. Sift flour, baking powder, and cinnamon into a medium bowl.

5. In a separate bowl, add the coffee powder to the milk to dissolve.

6. In an electric mixer, or large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

7. Beat in the egg until well blended.

8. Mix in the melted chocolate and vanilla extract.

9. Add the milk mixture and flour mixture alternately into the butter mixture on low speed, in four increments, ending with flour mixture. Beat until smooth.

10. Pour the batter into the lined cupcake pan, distributing the batter equally.

11. Bake for 10 minutes, rotate, and bake for 12 minutes more, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcake comes out clean.

12. Place the pan on a wire rack, and cool completely.
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting:

1. In an electric mixer, or large bowl, beat the butter and vegetable shortening on medium speed until creamy.

2. In a separate bowl, sift the confectioner’s sugar and the cocoa powder together.

3. Add the confectioner’s sugar and the cocoa powder to the butter mixture on low speed until it begins to incorporate.

4. Add the vanilla extract, and beat at medium to high speed until fully incorporated.

Coconut Macaroons

2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 5 1/2 cups flaked coconut
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
2. Stir flour, coconut and salt in a large bowl then stir in the sweetened condensed milk and vanilla until well blended. Use an ice cream scoop to drop dough onto the prepared cookie sheets. Cookies should be about golf ball size.
3. Bake for 12- 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until coconut is toasted. Serve and enjoy!

Creamy Carbonara

Ingredients:
1/2 cup chopped bacon
2 tbsp chopped garlic
2 packs All-Purpose Cream Cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup grated Cheddar cheese
1/2 water
300g spaghetti, cooked al dente

Procedure:
1. Fry bacon in a pan until crisp. Add garlic and cook until lightly browned.
2. Lower heat and pour in All-Purpose Cream, followed by cheeses. Thin out with water and stir to combine.
3. Toss cooked spaghetti into the sauce until well-coated. Serve immediately.

Tiramisu Cake

2 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 sticks (10 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup buttermilk

For the espresso extract:
2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
2 tablespoons boiling water

For the Espresso Syrup:
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon amaretto, Kahlua, or brandy

For the filling and frosting:
1 8-ounce container mascarpone
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon amaretto, Kahlua, or brandy
1 cup cold heavy cream
2 1/2 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, grated
Cocoa powder, for dusting

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 9×2 inch round cake pans, dust the insides with flour, tap out the excess, and line the bottoms of the pans with parchment or wax paper. Put the pans on a baking sheet.

To make the Cake:
1) Sift together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

2) Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until soft and creamy. Add the sugar and beat for another 3 minutes. Add the eggs one by one, and then the yolk, beating for 1 minute after each addition. Beat in the vanilla; don’t be concerned if the mixture looks curdled. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, adding the dry ingredients in 3 additions and the milk in 2 (begin and end with the dry ingredients); scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed and mix only until the ingredients disappear into the batter. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula.

3) Bake for 28 to 30 minutes, rotating the pans at the midway point. When fully baked, the cakes will be golden and springy to the touch and a thin knife inserted into the centers will come out clean. Transfer the cakes to a rack and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes, unmold them, and peel off the paper liners. Invert and cool to room temperature right-side up.

To make the extract:
Stir the espresso powder and boiling water together in a small cup until blended. Set aside.

To make the syrup:
Stir the water and sugar together in a small saucepan and bring just to a boil. Pour the syrup into a small heatproof bowl and stir in 1 tablespoon of the espresso extract and the liqueur or brandy; set aside.

To make the Filling and Frosting:
1) Put the mascarpone, sugar, vanilla, and liqueur in a large bowl and whisk just until blended and smooth.

2) Working with the stand mixer with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer, whip the heavy cream until it holds firm peaks. Switch to a rubber spatula and stir about one quarter of the whipped cream into the mascarpone. Fold in the rest of the whipped cream with a light touch.

To assemble the Cake:
1) If the tops of the cake layers have crowned, use a long serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion to even them. Place one layer right-side up on a cardboard round or a cake plate protected with strips of wax or parchment paper. Using a pastry brush or a small spoon, soak the layer with about one third of the espresso syrup. Smooth some of the mascarpone cream over the layer – user about 1 1/4 cups – and gently press the grated chocolate into the filling. Put the second cake layer on the counter and soak the top of it with half the remaining espresso syrup, then turn the layer over and position it, soaked side down, over the filling. Soak the top of the cake with the remaining syrup.

2) For the frosting, whisk 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of the remaining espresso extract into the remaining mascarpone filling. Taste the frosting as you go to decide how much extract you want to add. If the frosting looks as if it might be a little too soft to spread over the cake, press a piece of plastic wrap against its surface and refrigerate it for 15 minutes or so. Refrigerate the cake too.

3) With a long metal icing spatula, smooth the frosting around the sides of the cake and over the top. If you want to decorate the cake with chocolate-covered espresso beans, press them into the filling, making concentric circles of beans or just putting some beans in the center of the cake.

4) Refrigerate the cake for at least 3 hours (or for up to 1 day) before serving – the elements need time to meld.

5) Just before serving, dust the top of the cake with cocoa.

Recipe from "My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan"