Weekend Treats

Last night I visited the Arts and Crafts Fair in Cork City hall for the first time in years! My mom and I used to go every year when I was younger (the hight light being a Wizard of Oz ragdoll which featured Dorothy but when you turned her upside down the Lion, the Tinman and the Strawman appeared!) This year was a little different as I appreciated the food stands much more. I kept some self control however and only purchased these delicious lollipops from Eve Chocolates. At €1 each they were incredibly good value and oh so delicious!

If anybody is around Cork today, definitely pop in!

This morning was cold, wet and miserable. What better breakfast than pancakes? 

Find out how to make pancakes here.

This new addition to the kitchen, a le Creuset jug was perfect for beating the pancakes and really cut down on the clean up job after- it would make a great Christmas present for a pancake chef... and a good hint that you want more pancakes!!

Whatever you get up to, enjoy your weekend!

Stay sweet!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy thanksgiving y'all!!

I hope everyone has a great day! 

Special thanks to my home girl  Kate who was the most insightful guest ever today on sUCCulent! After our chat I'm so intrigued by yams! Marshmallows and sweet potato, two of my favourite foods ever! I'll definitely have to try these out!

Have an "awesome" day Kate!


Also,a big shout out to Cobbler who was pardoned yesterday by President Obama!

(Podcast to come!) Until then, prepare your pumpkin pie!

Stay sweet and be thankful!

Here's the podcast! 

https://www.box.com/s/h7vz86hw7b1ale55xco8

Thanks again Kate! xxx

Too Cheesy?

The whole universe was in a hot dense state...

The opening line of my favourite television theme tune! Yes last week The Big Bang Theory returned to Irish shores and brought with it an radio show inspired by The Cheesecake Factory! 

Tune in to hear some delicious recipes, novel ideas and unique tips and tricks on how to make the perfect cheesecake!!


Stay sweet!

Friday Fave: How to Transport a Cake

After baking the scrumptious chocolate cake for James' birthday I was left dumbfounded. How could I transport my masterpiece during a half hour drive without it getting damaged? 

I tore out the cupboards until I came across the perfect instrument... A pasta bowl!

This Tupperware bowl fits underneath a colander and the snap on lid keeps the pasta warm (a ridiculously good invention!) The beauty of it is it's so big, the dome is huge so it doesn't touch the cake below.

Be careful using Tupperware, snapping the lid onto the bowl- it's a spring action technique that is supposed to be done when the bowl is standing upright so it's a little fiddly when there's weight on the lid.

Have a root around your kitchen some day when you have time on your hands and figure out what container is the best for transporting a cake- so when all the hard work of baking and decorating is done you don't have to panic over how what to store it in!

Stay sweet!

Time to get Baking!!

Six weeks til D-day, or should I say C-day? 

My favourite time of year is upon us, and it's time to get baking! 

Christmas Cakes and Puddings both have to be made well in advance, so for my radio show last week I spoke of the dos and don'ts when festive baking! 



The recipes I used are Irish chef, Neven Maguire's and are fantastic!

As always, I'll be on air live tomorrow, 11am Irish time on 98.3fm if you're in Cork, or you can listen online at http://www.ucc.ie/983fm/ 

A taster of the end point of pudding-making! Pour some brandy over the pudding and strike a match! Turn off the lights for maximum impact!

Until then, stay sweet! x

Chocolate Birthday Cake

Calling all chocolate lovers!!

For my boyfriend's birthday two weeks ago, I wanted to make something a little different than the regular cocoa-sponge and cocoa-buttercream (he loves chocolate almost as much as I do!)

When I was in Harvard back in 2011, I purchased the 'flour' cookbook by Joanne Chang. Joanne was a Harvard business grad turned pastry chef who has three neighbourhood cafe-bakeries in Boston (which I am ashamed to say I have not visited...yet!) 

This book would be a great Christmas present as it is innovative, indulgent and takes the fear out of more complicated projects such as homemade pastries (watch this space!) It's a beautifully laid out book, with a practical gloss-hardback cover and really is a foodie's dream!

Due to lack of certain ingredients, and wanting to bake a cake and not cupcakes, I made numerous adjustments to the recipe for Chocolate Cupcakes with Crispy Magic Frosting.

*Note that the book requires Dutch-processed cocoa (or alkalized unsweetened cocoa poweder); this is treated with an alkali so that its natural acidity is neutralized and it has a stronger flavour. It does not react with baking soda- which is why it must always be used with baking soda and is not interchangeable.

Not a huge fan of red... :P

This recipe is also known as 'dump cake' because it's so easy, you just dump everything into the one bowl! :) However it does need to sit for at least an hour in order to thicken the batter. This is not a cake to be made in a hurry- you've been warned!

The air bubbles will also disperse once the batter sits.

Ingredients:
56g good quality chocolate (I used Lidl's 76%), chopped
30g Bourneville cocoa
200g ganulated sugar
114g unsalted butter
1/3 cup water
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
1 egg yolk (keep the egg white as it can be used for another recipe within the next day)
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
140g self-raising flour

1. Grease two 6-inch cake pans.
2. In a Pyrex bowl, combine the chocolate and cocoa powder.
3. In a small saucepan, heat the sugar, butter and water over medium high heat, whisking occasionally for 3-4 minutes, until butter is melted and sugar is totally dissolved.
4. Pour hot mixture into the chocolate and cocoa bowl and whisk (using a handheld mixer) until chocolate is completely melted and the ingredients are fully mixed.
5. Whisk milk, egg, egg yolk and vanilla into the mixture until thoroughly combined.
6. Dump the flour into the bowl and mix until combined.
7. Let batter sit for at least one hour to allow the batter to thicken. It can sit in an airtight container for up to three days in a fridge.
8. 20 mins before baking, preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
9. Bake for about thirty minutes or until the top of the cake is springy to touch.
10.  I used ordinary buttercream icing, as you've seen on the blog before. As per usual, ice when cool.
11. To decorate I used miniature chocolate chips, I think these reflected the intense chocolate flavour of the cake. Of course you could also pipe a sentiment if time allows.

This cake is guaranteed to make the birthday boy or girl smile!

Movie Night Munch

Sick of your regular movie night plans? On last week's broadcast of sUCCulent, we discussed some alternatives to the traditional popcorn and take-away!

Enjoy, and don't forget to tune in tomorrow to UCC 98.3fm in Cork, Ireland and for international listeners at 11am local time on http://www.ucc.ie/983fm/ :)

Until then,

Stay sweet! 

Happy Halloween!!!

Hey guys,

I hope your day has been spooktacular! :)
Here are some easy, achievable ideas for tonight's trick or treaters!

You might notice a different format to the usual picture tutorial... I have some Very exciting news! As of last week I am now hosting a foodie show on my campus radio (UCC CCR) which broadcasts live each Thursday 11am-12 noon Irish time on 98.3fm! You can listen live online at http://www.ucc.ie/983fm/

Here's the podcast of my very first live show! Hope you enjoy!

Rawwwwr! Happy Halloween! :)