Cheese Brownies

I have baked this cake for lots of times. At beginning, I thought that cheese cake is my favorite. But, it is really boring to bake cheese cake every time. All my friends know how much I love chocolate. So, I thought why not mix cheese cake and brownie together?? Yes, why not? I still remember how amazing this cake is when I ate it first time. Then, I talked to my friends that I found out lots of baker lover have same feelings. Hee… I think it is what we do. Baking lovers have same IDEA!!

Oven Temperature Setting:

180C/350F/Gas Mark 4 for first 10 minutes

Then, lower to 160C/325F/Gas Mark 3 after having cheese batter

Baking Time: Around 60 minutes
Recipe: A 7" Cheese Brownies

 

Steps of Cheese Brownies
(1) Melted dark chocolate and butter. When melting chocolate, don’t let the bottom of the bowl (with chocolate) touching the boiling water. It will change chocolate’s physical characteristics.
Also, it needs to cool down for a while before adding into the batter. Otherwise, the batter will be cooked before we send it into the oven.
(2) Place eggs, milk, and vanilla extract in a bowl. Whisk them.
(3) Add sugar, flour, and baking powder into the bowl. Incorporate the well.

(4) Add melted chocolate into the bowl. Incorporate all ingredients well.

(5) Pour brownies batter into the baking tin. Send it into the pre-heat oven at 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4 for the first 10 minutes.

(6) Prepare Cheese filling: add cream cheese, egg, vanilla extract in a big bowl. Mix all ingredients well. Then, add sugar into the cheese batter. Mix them

(7) Take brownies out of the oven. Reserve ONE Table Spoon cheese batter for swirling, and then pour the batter over the top of brownies.

(8) Selena’s Kitchen Talk: Drawing some pattern over the top is not a necessary step that skipping this one if you don’t want to do this.

Reserve one table spoon cheese batter. Add 2 Table Spoon of chocolate powder into the batter. Mix them well. Swirl it over the top of cheese batter. Then, draw the line in vertical direction.

(9) Switch the temperature down to 160C/325F/Gas Mark 3. Bake around 45~50 minutes until it sets.

Cheese Brownies is very delicious that it is more like brownies flavor with some soft cheese on the top. If you like cheese cake and chocolate brownies, don’t forget to try this one. You will LOVE it. Enjoy it.

Chocolate Banana Mousse Tart

This tart was prepared for a craft night. The purpose of the craft night is to prepare some X’mas gifts for children in Romania. My friend had a speech to let people what their team did in Romania this year. They go to Romania every year to help children over there. We did some hair accessories, candy cane and sock toys that all of them will be delivered to Romania in November. It is a meaningful event that we just did some simple toys that can make those children have a happier X’mas.

Recipe: A 7” Chocolate Banana Mousse Tart

 

Chocolate Shortcrust Pastry Link

 

                           

 

Steps of Chocolate Banana Mousse Tart

(1) Add gelatin powder into cold water. Set aside for around 5 minutes until gelatin powder absorbs the water. Then, place the cup into a pan with boiling water. Stir it until it is dissolved. Then, cool down a little bit.

(2) Add 2 chopped banana, egg yolk, half of sugar, and 20 ml double cream into a big bowl. Stir all ingredients until they are well-incorporated.

(3) Place the bowl over the top of saucepan. Heat a little bit. Then, add the dissolved gelatin into the bowl. Set aside.
(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: Warm up the batter can avoid any lumps.)

(4) Add 130ml cream and half of sugar into another bowl. Whip the cream until it is light.

(5) Fold the whippeded cream into the batter gradually. Make sure it well-mixed before adding more whipped cream into the batter.

(6) Chop another banana, and then place them over the top of the pastry. Pour the batter into the chocolate pastry. Leave in the fridge overnight.

(7) Prepare chocolate ganache icing: Place the bowl over the top of saucepan, but don’t touch the water. Add 60 ml into the bowl and warm it up, and put broken chocolate into the bowl. Mix it until it is melted. Cool down a little and then pour over the top of mouse. Use a knife to spread it. Set aside in the fridge for another hour.

 

My chocolate banana mousse tart was the only dessert gone at the craft night. I was so happy some people coming and asking how I did it. Because they said they didn’t see this kind of tart before. And yes, after staying here a year, I found out English people prefer to eat cake. But, in Taiwan, we like to eat mousse or lighter cake.

Anyway, this chocolate banana mousse tart is very rich. It will be good to eat with a cup of tea or coffee. Enjoy it.

Chocolate Shortcrust Pastry

Some people will say that it is too bother to bake chocolate shortcrust pastry. So, people use oreo as the replacement. I tried it, but using oero as the base is very sweet. However, the taste of homemade chocolate shortcrust pastry is totally different. It is not sweet at all. I highly recommend to bake it at home. We just the time at baking, don’t we?

 

Oven Temperature Setting: 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4

Baking Time: Around 20~25 minutes
Recipe: A 7” Chocolate Shorecrust Pastry

 

Steps of Shortcrust Pastry

(1) Place flour and chocolate powder in a big bowl. Mix all ingredients well

(2) Add butter into the bowl. Rub butter into the flour. It will be crumble-like

(3) Add water into the mixture. Lightly knead it into a ball.

(4) Put it into a food storage and leave in the fridge for around 30 minutes.

(5) Move the dough to a working table. Roll it into a round shape, around 0.5 cm.

(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: Covering with wrapping film is easier to roll the pastry.)

(6) Place it over the top of the baking tray. Line it with the baking pray. Use a fork to poke holes on the pastry.

(7) Cover pastry with baking stone and send it to the pre-heat oven at 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4 around 10 minutes. Then, get rid of baking stones and bake another 10 minutes until the top turns golden.

(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: I am lazy so that I will leave it in the freezer around 20 minutes. Then, you don’t need to cover the pastry with baking stone. And it takes around 20 minutes to bake it.)

Rocky Road

Rocky Road is a very easy and simple dessert. It is very suitable for new bakers or parents-children enjoying their fun time in the kitchen.

It is a very popular dessert in the UK that I have seen rocky road in lots of parties. Everyone likes it a lot. Usually, it is the first dessert gone from the table. We only need 4 ingredients and no need to use oven. Then, we can have this lovely chocolate bite. Come and do this with me.

Recipe: Serve 6 people

 

 

Steps of Rocky Road

(1) Put chopped dark chocolate, butter, and chocolate into a big bowl. Put the bowl on the top of the boiling water. Stir all of them until melting. Please don’t let the bottom of the bowl touching the boiling water.

(2) Then, add golden syrup into the melting chocolate. Mix everything well.

(3) Add the small pieces biscuits and marshmallow into the melting sauce. Make sure all biscuits and marshmallow are covered with chocolate sauce.

(4) Place them into a tin and set in the fridge around 2~3 hours until it is set.

 

Is it easy? Everyone can do it!! There was a meeting last week that we demonstrated to new students how to do this simple, but yum dessert… they all love it. So, go and enjoy this baking fun.

Red Velvet Cake Made with Beetroot

For me, red velvet cake is always considered as a very elegant cake. Because of it beautiful red color, it lets people image to eat red velvet cake with a cup of coffee or tea in the high-end restaurant. I would like to bake red velvet cake for ages, but I gave up because I didn’t want to poison myself to eat red food coloring. I know it can be replaced by beetroot. I always forgot to buy it. So, I have no chance to bake it. Last Saturday, my friend gave us some beetroots. I thought, Oh… Yes… My red velvet cake… Finally, I can bake it by myself. I used beetroots so that I didn’t use vinegar and buttermilk to have the reaction. So, here you go.

 

Oven Temperature Setting: 160C/325F/Gas Mark 3

Baking Time: 40~45 minutes

Recipe: A 7” Round Baking Dish

 

Steps of Red Velvet Cake

(1) Prepare a small saucepan filling a half full with hot water. Place a bowl over the top of saucepan, but not touching the water. Break dark chocolate into small pieces and place into the bowl. And cut butter into small cubes and place into the bowl. Switch on the small heat. Stir the chocolate and butter until it is melted. Remove the bowl from the pan. Set aside.

 (2) Place eggs and mashed beetroot into another bowl. Mix them well

(3) Add flour, baking powder, and sugar gradually into mixture. Make sure incorporate all ingredients before adding more flour and sugar in.

 (4) Add chocolate mixture into the beetroot mixture. Well incorporate all of them. Pour into the baking dish. Send it to a pre-heated oven at 160C/325F/Gas Mark 3 and bake around 40~45 minutes.

(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: Insert the cake tester into the middle of the cake. If there is no batter left on it, it means it is ready)

 

Steps of Cream Cheese Icing
(1) Place soft cheese, butter and icing sugar into a bowl. Mix them well. Leave in the fridge around 30 minutes to be set. It is easier to spread.

 Steps of Assembly

(1) When red velvet cake is ready, cool the cake completely on a rack. It takes around 1~2 hours.
(2) Slice the top off of the cake
(3) Spread the cream cheese icing over the top. And, place some strawberries or chocolate on the top of cream cheese icing as the decorations.

 

Hee… My dreamy cake… Red Velvet Cake. Just feel like it is a cake, but it is SUPER HEALTHY cake. Bake with beetroots. How is your idea? Enjoy it.

Chocolate Brownie

As a chocolate obsession, I’ll say chocolate makes my life BETTER. When I feel sad, I eat it. When I feel happy, I still eat it. What is the most favorite chocolate cake for all chocolate obsessions? Is it chocolate brownie? I don’t know.  But, when talking about baking chocolate cake, chocolate brownie will the first thing popping up to my mind.

Some people said brownie is developed by mistakes that a baker forgot to put baking powder. But, it was actually created for ladies, who can simply put cake-like characteristic in their boxed lunches and easily eat them, went to World’s Columbian Exposition in 1983. Later, the chocolate brownie has lots of relatives, like Blonde Brownies, White Chocolate Brownies… Anyway, I would like to share a simple and easy to bake brownie recipe this time. When I have no time to study new recipe or I am busy at doing my work, I still want to bake something. This is what I am going to bake.

 

Oven Temperature Setting: 180C/356F for 10 minutes. Lower to 170C/338F for another 20~25 minutes.

Recipe: A 13cm X 21cm baking tin

 

 
 

 

Steps of Chocolate Brownie

(1) Weight all ingredients

(2) Place eggs, milk, and vanilla extract in a bowl. Whisk them.
(3) Add butter into the bowl. Incorporate the well.

(4) Add melted dark chocolate into the bowl. Mix them well.

(Selena’s Kitchen Talk:
*When melting chocolate, don’t let the bottom of the bowl (with chocolate) touching the boiling water. It will change chocolate’s physical characteristics.
**Also, it needs to cool down for a while before adding into the batter. Otherwise, the batter will be cooked before we send it into the oven.)
(5) Add the rest ingredients into the chocolate batter. Incorporate all ingredients well.
(6) Pour chocolate batter into the baking tin. Send it into the pre-heat oven at 180C/356F for the first 10 minutes. Then, lower the temperature to 170C/338F for another 20~25 minutes.
(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: Insert the cake tester into the middle of the cake. If there is no batter left on it, it means it is ready.)

When it is well-cooked, I’ll leave it into the oven with an open door around 10 minutes. (Of course, the oven is switched off!) It can prevent the sink because the temperature difference.

The best chocolate will be served when leaving in the fridge overnight. The chocolate will be totally incorporated into the whole texture. Cut into squares or bar. Either eat directly or with ice cream. Um… YUM…

Magic Chocolate Cake

 

My lovely flat-mate and friend is totally chocolate obsession. ME, TOO. In order to celebrate we finished one-year studying in the UK. We would like to bake a chocolate cake. Brownie? No. We baked it too many times. After doing some studyings, I find out “Magic Chocolate Cake.” Why is it called “magic”? This kind of cake doesn’t need to do topping, filling, or base separately, and then it has three layers. Having three layers means you can have three different tastes in ONE bite. But, it is needed to mix the batter with a specific order. Like Mary Berry said, Read the recipe carefully, at least twice. Then, we can enjoy it.

 

 

 

 

 

Oven Temperature Setting: 160℃/325℉, Baking Time: Around 40~50 minutes

Recipe: Serve for a 8” baking tin

(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: Actually, I don’t find out the difference taste when using salted or unsalted butter. If you have some worries, you can use unsalted butter.)
  
Steps
(1) Weight all the ingredients
(2) Separate the eggs. Put the egg white and the egg yolks into the different bowls.
(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: The bowl for the egg white needs to be CLEAN and DRY.)
(3) Add Sugar into the egg yolks. Whisk it until it is well-mixed.

(4) Add melted butter and vanilla extract into the batter. And mix it well.

(5) Add flour into the batter and mix it
(6) Add warmed milk and melted chocolate into the batter gradually. And continue to beat it.
(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: I melted chocolate in the measure jar. When it is almost melted, I pour the milk in. So, I don’t need to warm up again.)

(7) Beat the egg white until it is stiff.

(8) Fold the egg white into the chocolate batter, 1/3 per time. Repeat it until we use all the egg white. Make sure egg white is well-mixed into the chocolate batter.
(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: Because of the different density of egg white and chocolate batter, folding 1/3 per time can make it easier to fold.)
(9) Pour the batter into a 8” tin with baking paper. Send it into the pre-heated oven at 160℃/325℉. Bake it around 40~50 minutes.
(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: Insert the cake tester into the middle of the cake. If there is no batter left on it, it means it is ready.)

 

When it is well-cooked, I’ll leave it into the oven with an open door around 10 minutes. (Of course, the oven is switched off!) It can prevent the sink because the temperature difference.

During the baking, the smell of chocolate is too good. I know…I know I can’t wait to eat it. You can eat it in hot or cold. You will have different kinds of feelings. For chocolate cake, I like to eat it with coffee. So, try it and enjoy it. You will LOVE it.