Thermomix, chocolate cupcakes

Carlos this entry is specially for you. Of course you can make gorgeus cakes with Thermomix. Just for those of you who are not Spanish and not so familiar with thermomix, I must tell you that this is a kitchen applience that heats, blends, mixes and many more things, you can find all about it here.

Well, this applience is wellcomed into newly weds homes with as much expectation as a new baby. And ... my friend Carlos is at this moment the proud father of a new thermomix. We were discussing today the capabilities of our gadget ( I also have one but mine is a teenager now, a bit rebel at times). As a matter of fact it will not beat up merengue to the soft peaks stage so it is impossible to make italian meringue with it. C. insisted in the different number of beatiful cakes he has made since he got his, and beeing a bit temperamental as a good spaniard I told him IT IS IMPOSSIBLE to make nice cakes in thermomix.

Here is my humble apology, I just made these beatiful and really nice chocolate cupcakes for my daughter M. and her 4 friends who came for tea today. They ate all of the 18 I had made with the help of ´J. and P. So now the recipe.

Thermomix Chocolate cupcakes
For the cupcakes
3 eggs
180 gr. of sugar
180 gr. of butter at room temperature (soft)
130 gr. of flour
50 gr. of cocoa powder
1 teaspoon of baking powder
a pinch of salt

For the chocolate icing
60 gr. chocolate
120 gr. butter
1/4 cup of cream
1/2 cup of icing sugar
Preheat oven to 200º

Method for cupcakes in the Thermomix
1.- put the eggs and sugar in the Thermomix with the butterfly and beat for 3 minutes at speed 4 and temperatura 40 for 3 minutes.
2.- now put the butter into the Thermomix and beat for a further minute at speed 4
3.- Put all the dry ingredients into the thermomix and beat for 6 seconds

You have enough mixture for 18 cupcakes. put the mixture into 18 cupcake cases and bake for 10-15 minutes until well risen. Put on a wire rack and let them cool.

Method for the chocolate icing
1.- Put the cream and chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water, until the chocolate

melts .
2.- Using the butterfly beat the butter with the icing sugar in the thermomix at speed 3 for 2

minutes, you can add the chocolate sauce when it is cold and beat for a further minute. You

can now put the icing into a piping bag with a size 5 nozle and let it cool for a further 30

minutes .
3.- Decorate the cupcakes with a spiral of chocolate icing on top of each of them. For these ones I

put a few drops of mint essence into the chocolate icing .

If you don't have a Thermomix it doesn't matter beat with whatever gadget you got for your wedding!! And if your not married what you got from your mother when you moved out , and follow all the instructions. good luck!

J. thank you for the photos

My alter ego

Today I would like to share with you, just in case anyone apart from my family is reading, a company to which I profess great admiration. Its name is Chocolate Pancracio and from my point of view it has made a difference with its approach to creating, designing and selling high quality chocolate products from Spain to an increasing number of countries. You can read all about them here where if you like chocolate your mouth will turn into water.

I have tried several of their recipes and they always turn out right so I urge you to do the same.

Until I get more photos of my own that's all for today.

The recipes

I guess whats the point of having a food blogg if you don't share your recipe's? I would like to start with the recipe for what I call "The best chocolate cake in the world". As a matter of fact it is a versión of the 70's classic Gateau Diane, which you can find in a Cordon
Bleu recipe book from 1973.

I found the inspiration in a cake I tasted in Lisbon called "El meior bolo de chocolate du mondo". I like a challenge so I decided to contest the portuguese version for the world leadership in chocolate cakes.

So as I was begining with my meringue baking and selling adventure, I decided this should be one of the cakes to offer. And I must say it is working very well, even though I say so myself as M.Tabb says.

Th recipe


Chocolate Meringue base

6 eggs whites
300 gr. of sugar
50 gr. of cocoa powder


Chocolate cover

6 egg yolks
150 gr. of butter
200 gr. of milk
100 gr. of sugar
300 gr. of best quality 70% dark chocolate

Method


For the meringue base
Preheat oven to 100 Centrigrade
Beat the egg whites until soft white peaks begin to form
Add the sugar and cocoa little by little, beating up after every addition.
Draw 3 23 cm diameter circles on baking parchment and with a piping bag make three "meringue" circles
Put them into the oven and bake for two hours

For the chocolate cover
Beat the egg yolks with the sugar and milk, pour into a heavy based pan and bring to a simmer, ad the butter cut into pieces stirring continously, when you have a smooth custard turn of the heat. Brake the chocolate into small pieces and drop into the hot custard. Leave it for 5 minutes before stirring vigorously. You should have by now a shiny chocolate sauce. Let it cool.

To assemble the cake sandwich the 3 meringue circles with the chocolate filling, covering the top of the last circle aswell. If you wish you can also cover the sides. You can decorate it with little merigues.


I hope you like it as much as me and my friends do.