Friday, December 20, 2013

Recipe | Nutella Cupcakes

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When I started learning how to properly use our Oven Toaster to bake cupcakes, I started checking so many cupcake videos on YouTube to know about different flavor combinations. One of the "easy" cupcakes to do is the Nutella Cupcakes, which I baked when my sister celebrated her birthday three days ago.

Nutella Cupcakes

Nutella Cupcakes
{yield - 10 cupcakes}

Ingredients - Cupcakes

  • 1 box Maya Butter Cake Mix
  • 4 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 medium eggs
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons cocoa powder (optional)
Ingredients - Frosting
  • 2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon Nutella spread
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
Let's bake!

> Cream softened butter and blend in the cake mix until well combined.
> Make a well in the center and add in eggs - one at a time - lightly mixing the batter in between eggs.
> Add the water and mix until well combined, making sure not to over mix the batter.
> Line muffin trays with cupcake liners and pour in batter, filling 2/3 of each cup.
> If using oven toaster, cover the tray with aluminum foil and bake in the oven toaster for 7 minutes.
> Take out the foil cover once it reached the 7 minute mark and bake further for three more minutes.
> Once the cupcakes are fully baked, cool them on racks and set aside.

To make the frosting, just beat the butter and cream cheese together until well combined, the pour in the vanilla, followed by the Nutella spread. Beat further then slowly add the powdered the sugar. Continue beating the mixture using an electric mixer until it becomes fluffy. As always, if it's too heavy, add milk (one tablespoon at a time) or if it's too light, add more powdered sugar. Top cupcakes with the frosting using a spoon or a piping bag, making sure the cupcakes are completely cool before frosting them. If it's warm, the heat will just melt the frosting. Drizzle the cupcakes with Nutella spread before serving. Also, you can also bore a hole into the cupcakes and fill it with Nutella spread, if you want to. I didn't do this as I don't want to overwhelm myself with the Nutella flavor.

Nutella Cupcakes Nutella Cupcakes

As you can see, I made two kinds of cupcakes. When I checked YouTube for videos, most of the videos used chocolate cupcakes, but one used vanilla cupcakes because chocolate cupcakes might drown the Nutella flavor. To find out which I prefer, I decided to make two different kinds.

I just made the batter and made five cupcakes using the basic mix, and for the second batch, I added a tablespoon of cocoa powder and half a tablespoon of water into the remaining batter. Personally, I preferred the chocolate one more maybe because adding the cocoa powder made the cupcake less sweeter compared the butter cupcakes. My sister and mother loved it, and I was a happy baker.

This Christmas, we will certainly make our own cupcakes, but of all the ones we baked, we loved the Carrot Cupcakes with Sour Cream Frosting the best, so that would be part of our Noche Buena menu.


FTFBadge

Thursday, December 19, 2013

“Nutcracker” Christmas Encore at Bizu Patisserie

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Bizu Patisserie, once again, takes you on a journey to Tchaikovsky’s Land of the Sweets with its Christmas 2013 Collection overflowing with favorites and unique offerings sure to make everyone’s holidays truly enchanting.

The season’s masterpiece is Bizu’s Grand Carousel. Reminiscent of Caroussel de la Tour Eiffel in Paris, it is filled with classic butter cookies, crisp tuile, luscious chocolate-covered pretzels and crunchy caramel popcorn. Wind it up and hear a captivating tune.


Taking the spotlight is Bizu’s Chestnut Cake, a combination of chestnut cremeaux, moist speculoos cake and caramel glaze topped with chestnut cream.

Welcome back some Bizu favorites. Indulge in the sweetness of Rudolph, a Christmas chocolate ornament ball with crème caramel filling and a moist chocolate brownie base. Set the Christmas table with Noël Fruit Cake made of Valrhona chocolate, pecans and dark cherries. Try the Christmas Carrot and Walnut Cake topped with rich brown butter cream cheese.


Melchor Croquembouche makes for a grand holiday table centerpiece. A lovely tower of profiteroles filled with pastry cream dipped in white and dark chocolate. Choose between an 18-inch tall croquembouche with 130 cream puffs or a 12- inch tall croquembouche with 60 cream puffs.

Christmas in Bizu is, of course, not complete without its signature Macaron de Paris. These masterpieces are almond meringue shells filled with a luscious combination of buttercream. Order in boxes of 8, 14 and 28 or get the Macaron Pyramid, another show stopping centerpiece that holds 40 pieces. Just for the holidays, Bizu offers Speculoos, a lightly spiced ginger and cinnamon-flavored macaron.

Something new are Bizu’s Chocolate Nut Butter Spreads, creamy and smooth combinations of chocolate and nut flavors with a hint of sweetness and a touch of saltiness. Try all four flavors: Hazelnut Milk Chocolate Butter, Macadamia and White Chocolate Butter, Almond Roca Butter and Pistachio White Chocolate Butter.

The Pot de Crème is another addition to Bizu’s Christmas Collection. The soft French crème comes in four flavors: Madagascar Vanilla, Dark Chocolate, Burnt Caramel and Sugar Free Gianduja Hazelnut.

Bizu puts a distinct spin on the much loved popcorn with its Gourmet Popcorn. Enjoy the light and popping crunch of caramel popcorn in three flavors: Salted Caramel; Dark Chocolate, Almonds and Pretzel; and Pistachio, White Chocolate and Macaron.


Cheese Tarts, another newcomer, is a perfect Christmas gift. This smooth and dense mascarpone cheesecake over flaky puff pastry is available per piece or in a lovely box of six.

New Ensaymada flavors make a vow this season. The three new flavors of Queso de Bola and Chorizo, Italian Pistachio and White Chocolate and Cheese Roll join the traditional Dark Chocolate, Almond Praline and Classic Cheese.

Bizu is well known for its luxurious French Gâteau. Each one is a sight to behold and every bite is unforgettably delicious. Have a taste of Samba, Opera, Nirvana, Amour, Roca, sugarless and flourless Jolie, sugarless Naomi, Tiramisu, Strawberry Shortcake and Chiboust in Blueberry, Mango and Strawberry.

Make the holidays more memorable with Bizu’s Savoury Holiday Traditions. Yuletide Pork Crown Roast is a festive circlet of juicy chops with a hearty stuffing of apples, chestnuts and sausages. Bizu's signature Ten-Hour Roast Beef Belly is so tender it melts in your mouth and comes with sidings of crunchy vegetables and creamy mushroom sauce.

Whole Turkey Roast is all plump, juicy and golden brown and comes with a signature stuffing of apples, chestnut and sausages with a duet of gravy and cranberry sauce. A perfect addition to any Christmas dinner and party is the Baked Salmon Rockefeller, baked Norwegian salmon layered with creamy spinach and topped with parmesan mornay sauce. Complete the celebration with Chicken Liver Paté and Smoked Salmon and Caviar for the appetizers.

This Christmas, celebrate the taste of joie de vivre only at Bizu. To order, email concierge@bizugroupe.com or call 845-0590 to 93. Visit Bizu Patisserie branches near you. Greenbelt 2 (757-2498), One Rockwell Tower, (478-7755 or 779-5044), Greenhills Promenade (724-2498 or 726-2496), Alabang Town Center (809-2498, 772-1917, or 772-1918), St. Luke’s Global City (823-6621) and Le Petit Bizu Robinsons Magnolia (467-0670).

Drop by the Bizu Christmas Carriage at the North Court of Power Plant Mall and our Christmas stall at the Greenbelt 3 Park. Email conciergeteam@bizugroupe.com or check out www.bizuchristmas.com. Like us on facebook.com/ilovebizu and follow us on twitter.com/bizuph.

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Krazy Garlik Goes to Greenhills

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Go on a garlicky adventure while tasting the different recipes from around the clove with Krazy Garlik’s newest branch at Promenade’s New Wing in Greenhills. Adding to the garlicky goodness of its roster of four restaurants, Krazy Garlik is now ready to feed the hungry foodies of the north. With flavors that will excite even non-believers, you shouldn’t miss out on this dining destination that glorifies the beautiful taste of garlic.

We have everything for everybody. But for the adventurous, taste Kraaazy meals like Garlik Snowflakes pizza with a cream sauce base topped with shrimps, pineapples, and garlic flakes or go for the Garlicky Crispy Pata or 40 Kloves Chicken that brings the love for garlic to a whole new level. Enjoy porkchop and Thai-inspired dishes like Pad Thai and Crispy Orange Shrimp, which will satisfy those who seek the more laid-back comforts of home. Best pair them with Kraaazy drinks like our best-selling popping boba and jelly drinks that burst in your mouth with fruity flavor. And as you go on to dessert, you can always depend on the Cream Catalana, a Spanish style-crème bruleè, or the Crepe Dynamite to end your Kraaazy meal with a bang.

You can always drop by Krazy Garlik at the 2nd Level, New Wing and taste the love with Krazy Garlik’s Kraaazy meals. With store hours of 11 am to 11 pm, we’re ready to serve the best of the garlic-infused dishes from around the world. And with our new opening blowout in Greenhills, enjoy 50% off the price of the all time favorite 40 Kloves Chicken from Dec 9 to 13, 2013 only. Get it for as low as Php207 for half chicken and Php397 for whole chicken valid only at Promenade branch. And if you decide to drive off and be somewhere else, we’ll be at Greenbelt 5, Newport Mall, Alabang Town Center, and a soon-to-open branch at Shangri-La Mall to serve you the to serve you garlicky dishes you’ll go kraaazy for and you ought not to miss.

To learn more about Krazy Garlik, find them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram: KrazyGarlikPH and join us with hashtags #KrazyGarlikPH #KrazyGarlikGhils

You can also visit their official website at www.krazygarlik.com.ph

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Jenn, the Foodie


I come from a family who loves cooking and eating. I never had any formal training in cooking and that I taught myself how to cook based on the handed down recipes, but I could say that I can cook good food. In 2008, I started documenting my food trips for my travel blog, and since I have quite enough to start a food blog, might as well put all those food trips in one location. Thus, a food blog is born - thanks to the new Friendster Blogs. However, due to several problems, I was left with no choice but to pack bags again and move here instead. Here's the permanent address, promise! Enough talk, let the food trippin' begin! {Know More About Me}