Hoho Cupcakes

They might not look as good as the ones you buy in the store, but they are a million times better. 

German Chocolate Cake

Viddy made this for a co-worker for his birthday. The frosting is amazing - I eat it by the spoonfuls.

Angel food cake but better!

This is an angel food cake topped with caramel sauce and chocolate mousse. There is a ring of chocolate mousse in the middle of the cake. 

Birthday cake for Kurtis

This is a cake we made for a kid in our ward. 

Creme Brulee

Crème Brulee

4 cups Heavy Cream

¾ cup sugar

2 tsp vanilla

10 egg yolks

¼ cup coarse grained sugar

8 6-oz ramekins

Large roasting pan

1. Preheat oven to 300 °F

2. In a small saucepan over medium heat dissolve the sugar into two cups of the cream, then add the vanilla and the remaining cream. Slowly add the cream mixture into the egg yolks while whisking to ensure a smooth and creamy texture.

3. Strain the mixture through a fine strainer. (This should remove/break-up any remaining lumps)

4. Place a dish towel in the bottom of your roasting pan and arrange the ramekins on the dish towel.

5. Pour the prepared mixture evenly into the ramekins and place in the oven. (Placing the pan in the oven before pouring the hot water minimizes the risk of slopping water around and into your ramekins)

6. Pour hot water into the roasting pan until about half-way up the sides of the ramekins.

7. Bake for 30-35 minutes until center is barely set.

8. Remove from water with tongs and a spatula.

9. Cool uncovered for about 2 hours and then cover tightly and cool in fridge for at least 2 more hours.

10. Remove plastic wrap and blot gently with a paper towel.

11. Use about 2 tsp of the coarse sugar and shake to spread evenly. Then using a blow torch (or a crème brulee torch) Heat the sugar until it melts and carmalizes. (I find that it is best to use sweeping motions to heat a little more evenly)

12. Enjoy

Boston Cream Cupcakes

Boston Cream Cupcakes

Cupcakes

1 and ¾ cups flour

1 cup sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

12 Tbsp butter

3 eggs

¾ cup milk

2 tsp vanilla

Cream

1 and ½ cups heavy whipping cream

3 egg yolks

½ cup sugar

4 tsp cornstarch

2 Tbsp butter

2 tsp vanilla

Glaze

8 oz chocolate

½ cup heavy whipping cream

¼ cup light corn syrup

tsp vanilla

Cupcakes

Beat Flour, Sugar, Baking Powder, Salt and Butter together until the mixture resembles wet sand or moist crumbs. Add the eggs beating between each. Beat in milk and vanilla until batter is smooth and fluffy. Bake at 350 °F for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Filling

Bring Heavy Whipping Cream to a simmer over medium heat. In a separate bowl whisk together the eggs, sugar, and cornstarch until thick and smooth. Slowly add some of the hot cream to the egg mixture to temper and then add that mixture back into the rest of the cream and continue heating and stirring until cream is glossy. Remove from heat and add butter and vanilla. At this point cream may be allowed to cool covered with plastic wrap in the fridge or placed in the cupcakes which must then be cooled (this is my preferred method as it allows the cupcakes to soak up a little of the cream flavor.)

To fill the Cupcakes: Cut a cone out of the top of the cupcake and then cut the bottom off of the cone so you have a lid to put back on. Don’t worry about how this looks as you will be covering it with glaze anyways.

Glaze:

Melt the Chocolate and then add the cream, butter, and corn syrup and mix until smooth. The glaze will need to cool to room temperature before use. Place cupcakes on a cooling rack over the sink and pour the glaze over the tops of them allowing extra glaze to drip into the sink. (Easy clean-up)

Caramel Custards

Caramel Custards

These are somewhere in between the rich custard of Crème Brulee and the less dense custard of flan. They are served like flan…flipped upside down with the caramelized sugar as a sauce. We serve them with fresh fruit and people love them. (Even people who don’t like flan)

You will need eight 6 oz ramekins…A ramekin is a short ceramic bowl with vertical sides. We bought ours at Wal-Mart for 86 cents each and think that they are well worth it. We also use them for Crème Brulee and Molten Lava Cakes.

Caramel:

½ cup water

1 and ¼ cups sugar

Custard:

3 eggs

2 egg yolks

2 tsp vanilla

¼ tsp salt

¾ cup sugar

3 cups Half and Half

Caramel:

Place water in saucepan and pour sugar into middle of the sauce pan being careful not to get any on the sides. Wet the sugar and heat (medium high) without stirring until liquid starts to color. Reduce heat to medium low and cook until sugar is a dark amber color – about 350 F. Pour immediately into eight 6oz ramekins. (or six 8oz ramekins) The carmelized sugar will cool and harden.

Place the ramekins on a towel in a roasting pan (or cake pan if they will fit). The towel is to keep them from sliding around when you fill the pan with boiling water later.

The Custard:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Start to boil enough water to fill your roasting pan about half full (not half empty)

2. Beat the eggs, egg yolks, vanilla, salt and ¾ cup sugar together until smooth. Heat the Half and Half until steamy and the pour slowly into the egg mixture while beating rapidly.

3. Although the custard could be poured into the ramekins at this point we recommend straining it through a fine strainer before pouring it into the ramekins. Try to spread the custard evenly into the ramekins.

4. Place the roasting pan in the oven and fill with enough boiling water to reach half way up the sides of the ramekins. Be careful not to slosh water into your custards

5. Bake for 35- 40 minutes until a thin knife inserted halfway between the center and the side comes out clean.

6. If you can remove the pan from the oven without spilling the water into the custards you may do so. If you are worried about your ability to perform such a task (as you probably should be) Then you can do what we do: We leave the pan in the oven and grab the ramekins with a pair of tongs and slide them onto a spatula (not flexible) and remove them one by one. (Be careful not to burn yourself on the top or sides of the oven…or the pan…or the ramekins…just be careful)

7. Let the custards cool for 2 hours and then wrap tightly in plastic wrap before placing them in the fridge. They must be refrigerated a minimum of 2 hours and it better if it’s longer We leave them overnight. They can be left for an extra day and are still just as good, but we can’t vouch for any longer than that because we have never had them last that long.

8. To serve: Run a knife around the edge of the ramekin. Place the serving plate over the ramekin and invert. We find that shaking the ramekin side to side works the best at releasing the custard from the ramekin. Also you may need to lift the ramekin slightly off of the plate as the caramel pours out because it will create a suction and stick the plate to the ramekin…then it is difficult to free your dessert!

9. Garnish with whatever you like or like my wife with nothing at all.