Blonde Bombshell: The Coffee Junkie’s Milkshake

I confess to doing something I really shouldn’t have done:

I went off the deep end one recent morning and brewed myself a cup of coffee.

Long-time readers of this blog know that I’m not supposed to have any coffee; the caffeine negates much of my mood stabilizer’s benefits. However, what’s a girl supposed to do if she can’t stay awake at work?! (Granted, of course, that work is boring, a regular drudgery…) But the coffee, you see, is the smallest of my sins in this particular context; wait till you hear what I added to it…

This is a sachet of Chocolate Blanco, Pan de Manila’s instant white hot chocolate. It’s a particularly smooth drink, rather sweet with a strong hint of vanilla to it; quite creamy, too, as a matter of fact. So, off it goes into the blender with half a glass of cold milk and the fresh cup of coffee. If you think, however, that this is where the debauchery ends, I’m going to have to disappoint you, because…

…I also threw in a good scoop of good ol’-fashioned Magnolia Vanilla ice cream. Now, if you start complaining about me being the very embodiment of culinary evil, I’ll tell you you’re wrong.

Why?

Hey, if I were really evil, I would have used Selecta Coffee Crumble ice cream instead of plain vanilla! :p

For all you java-mad folks out there, here’s the recipe:

Blonde Bombshell Milkshake

• 1/2 cup cold milk
• 1 cup brewed coffee
• 1 sachet Pan de Manila Chocolate Blanco or 2 tablespoons plain malted milk powder
• 1 scoop vanilla or coffee-flavored ice cream
• 3 ice cubes

Toss all ingredients into a blender and process until completely liquefied and frothy. Pour into a large tumbler. Serves 1.

Oh, and – for once, just this once – I suffered no ill effects from the caffeine. But that’s probably because I used decaf. :p

The Grown-up Mid-afternoon Milk Break Strikes Back

Truth be told, I find a glass of milk and a slice – or so – of cake in the middle of the afternoon a highly comforting experience.  More so, of course, if the cake just so happens to be chocolate and the milk is good and cold.  (I don’t mind warm milk, of course, but I get sleepy!)

I was at Seattle’s Best Coffee at Festival a few days ago and was feeling more than a little bummed out.  Lucky for me, I found a great milk-’n'-cake combo to cheer me up: an iced vanilla chai and a magnificently sticky chocolate lava cake.

I’ve long been a fan of SBC’s chai drinks: they aren’t very sweet and they are quite creamy, and the vanilla variant does not disappoint.  There’s the strong taste of good black tea in the background: just bold enough to make itself known, but not so strong as to be too harsh on the drinker’s palate.  Vanilla and cinnamon seem to be the predominant flavors in this drink, so I recommend it for those who are new to chai as it is more sweet than it is spicy.  There’s just enough milk, too, to cut through the brewed tea, giving the drink smoothness.

Now, tea isn’t exactly the drink people have in mind to go with chocolate cake, but I think that’s a matter of personal preference – and personally, I think milk tea goes beautifully with it.  The cake in this particular afternoon treat was, as I said earlier, gloriously sticky and fudgy.  Served warm, the solid sides will remind you of properly-baked brownies: just cakey enough to the bite with a pleasant bitter-sweetness.  The molten center, on the other hand, was truly decadent – not too rich enough to be cloying, but just gooey enough to satisfy even the most deep-seated cravings for fudge or ganache.

A Bit of Chocolate Indulgence

Oooh, cake!

I was at Secret Recipe about a week ago and found myself craving for something sweet as opposed to my usual laksa fix.  So, I found myself looking at the cake display and pondered on a classic question: Will it be cream cake today or cheesecake? Ahh, decisions, decisions…

What settled the question for me was this glorious, chocolate fondant-coated confection that goes by the fetching name Chocolate Indulgence.  What it is: chocolate cake layered with dark, milk, and white chocolate mousses.

That’s right: mousses – plural; three kinds of ‘em.

Looks tempting, doesn't it?

As pretty as this slice of cake looks, I’m all for the old adage about how the strength of a pudding lies in its eating.  I took a bite and I frowned at the texture of the cake part of this torte.  The chocolate sponge used was a tad on the dry side; quite disappointing because, having tried Secret Recipe’s cheesecakes, I was hoping that the sponge cakes they use for their cream tortes would be of a similar high caliber.

The mousses, on the other hand, were just delectable.  So, being the little chocolate fiend that I am, I quickly dispatched with the sponge cake (Waste not, want not! ) and left the mousse parts for last.  The white mousse is a milky delight – and I do not often say that about white chocolate desserts!  The chocolate mousse – the chocolate fondant! – made me sigh in sheer delight.

Honestly, save for the cake part, this is one dessert that really lives up to its name.

Apple Pie: A Herald of Feasts to Come

At our house, the best dishes are the ones prepared for the Holidays.  Starting in September, my mother and I start cooking up little teasers for the feasts to come: oatmeal cookies, orange or lemon chiffon cake with dark chocolate icing, and Russian salad.

But the dish that really serves as the harbinger of upcoming goodness in our home is streusel-topped apple pie.  Most people find it unusual that a Filipino family would actually find itself baking apple pies for the last few months of the year because traditional kakanin  or store-bought treats like food-for-the-gods and brownies are what usually grace local tables.  Along with ube cake, apple pie ala mode was my maternal grandfather’s favorite dessert.  Later on, when I finally mastered the art of baking these cinnamon-infused goodies, my own father developed a taste for them and looks forward to the baking of a new batch.  On a sadder note, however, apple pies are one of the reasons why my paternal grandmother and I do not get along.  But that is a story for another day… 

Our family’s take on this classic dessert involves a flaky crust filled to the brim with apples lavishly coated with cinnamon sugar.  A buttery crumb topping is generously sprinkled onto the whole confection before it goes into the oven.  Sweet and simple, really.

It’s a lovely dessert when served either hot or cold.  Warm slices are garnished with a generous scoop of very good vanilla ice cream and, perhaps, a good splodge of caramel cream.  (Use the caramel cream recipe I used in my banoffee torte; just skip the chilling and use straight from the stovetop.)  Served cold straight out of the fridge, it also makes for a lovely breakfast when paired with a hot, milky mug of cardamom chai.

Apple Pie
For the Crust:

• 1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 1/4 cup vegetable shortening
• 1/4 cup iced water

For the Filling:

• 6 medium apples, cored, peeled, and sliced
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

For the Streusel:

• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup butter

Grease a nine-inch pie plate; set aside.  Cut the shortening and salt into the flour with two knives or a pastry blender until the mixture has the appearance of fine breadcrumbs.  Add the iced water by tablespoons, tossing the mixture with a fork until well combined.  Form dough into a ball and set upon a floured surface.  Roll out the dough to approximately 1/2 inch thickness and line the prepared pan.  Set aside. 

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees / Gas Mark 5.

Make the streusel by cutting together the flour, brown sugar, and butter till the mixture also resembles breadcrumbs.  Set aside.

Toss the sliced apples with the brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour.  Leave to rest for about five minutes.

Dump the filling into the prepared crust, evenly spreading it over the surface.  Spoon any juices left in the mixing bowl onto the fruit.  Cover with the streusel.

Bake for 40 – 45 minutes.  Makes 1 pie.

Tortini di Gianduia: Crackle-top Hazelnut Cupcakes

There are several things that I find really exciting.  Roller coasters are one; traveling is another.  And, of course, there’s that incredible smile on the adorable Mr. W’s face.    Not to mention the fact that I have this fairly unlady-like predilection for action movies and sword-and-sorcery novels.  (Yes: I admit that I have a David Eddings collection at home and I nearly completed Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series!)

But, of late, it’s the creation of new recipes that gets me tingly all over.  I actually get a thrill from trying new flavor combinations using various ingredients. 

Today’s recipe is one such combo: a chocolate cupcake made more-ish with the addition of gianduia in the batter together with a quarter-cup of the most sinister bittersweet chocolate I could get my hands on.  The resulting cupcakes were actually lighter than those I usually bake and the tops were like crackly-crisp sugar wafers with a deliciously nutty flavor.  The crumb underneath was fluffy and full-flavored with the semi-melted chocolate morsels adding oomph to both the taste and texture.

These are perfect for afternoon tea when paired with a pot of either a really good Darjeeling or a spicy chai blend.  You can also serve these as a tres chic dessert if you have guests coming for dinner.  Trust me: they’ll be thrilled to get such a treat. 

Tortini di Gianduia

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup granulated white sugar
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 3 tablespoons cooking oil
• 1/4 cup Nutella or any similar hazelnut spread
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup hot water
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees / Gas Mark 4.  Line the cups of a standard muffin pan with paper cupcake liners.

Cream together the sugar, oil, and gianduia.  Add the egg and beat until well-combined.  Add the water and milk; stir till well-mixed.  Sift in the dry ingredients; add the chocolate chips and mix to achieve a smooth batter.  Pour about 1/4 cup of batter into each muffin cup.

Bake for fifteen to eighteen minutes; makes approximately 10 cupcakes.