The Cupcake Throwdown!

A few weeks ago I was asked to take part in a Cupcake Throwdown competition. As soon as I heard about it I knew I wanted to do participate, there had never been a competition in Vancouver like this before. The best thing about this Throwdown was that all the money raised went to charity, an organization called H.A.V.E that teaches homeless people how to cook so they can get jobs in restaurants.

I searched recipes for a long time. When it comes to cupcakes there are endless flavour combinations. There was one recipe, as soon as I saw it I wanted to make it: Mexican Hot Chocolate from the book "Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World" . When I read the title I instantly thought of when I was in Mexico on vacation, out of all the interesting foods and flavours I tried when I was down there, what I remembered best was drinking Mayan Coffee every night. Mayan coffee is made with coffee beans, nutmeg, cinnamon, cayenne, milk and dark chocolate.

So, imagining what this cupcake tasted like, and that fact that it was vegan, and the competition was being held at the vegetarian restaurant Cafe Deux Soleil, which is on Commercial Drive, where they have held the famous Parade of Lost Souls, which got me thinking of the day of the dead which led me back to Mexican theme, I decided that this cupcake defiantly was the one.

I experimented with this recipe quiet a bit. I remember the first time I made it I could barely wait to try it. I ended up smothering the still warm cupcake in icing and shoving it in my mouth and turning to my boyfriend with a mouth full of cupcake and saying "This tastes exactly like mexican hot chocolate!!!". However, I did end up tweaking the recipe a bit for a little added kick. First I decided change the icing to a straight up vegan creamcheese icing, and also ended up filling the cupcakes with a chili and spice "ganache" made from coconut milk.

I decided to finish the cupcakes with a day of the dead inspired fondant topper. Most fondant is not vegan, but the brand Virgin Ice is.

*Photo's by Cherry Vega

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cupcakes

Makes 12 cupcakes.

ingredients
1 cup coconut milk

1 tablespoon ground flaxseeds

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons corn flour or very fine cornmeal

1/4 cup almond meal

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper (more or less to taste)

1 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup canola oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond extract

Cream Cheese Icing

1/4 cup tofutti better then cream cheese

1/4 cup earth balance buttery spread

2 cups icing sugar

1 tsp Vanilla

Chili and Spice Ganache

1 cup coconut milk

1 1/4 cup semi sweet chocolate (I used a combination of semi sweet and cocoa camino chili and spice 71% dark chocolate)

1/4 tsp Cinnamon

Pinch of chili powder and cayenne

directions
Preheat oven to 350F and line muffin pan with cupcake liners.

Whisk together coconut milk and flaxseed and allow to sit for 10 minutes, then whisk in sugar, oil, vanilla, and almond extract.

In another bowl, sift together flour, corn flour, almond meal, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and cayenne. Gently mix in wet ingredients.

Fill cupcake liners with 1/4 cup of batter (approximately 2/3 full). Bake for 20 -22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to a cooling rack and cool completely.

For frosting soften creamcheese in mixer, and the earth balance (it should be at room temperature) and beat on med speed until combined. Scrape down the bowl. Add icing sugar and vanilla then mix and low speed until smooth.

For the Ganache, chop chocolate into small pieces and put in a large bowl. Bring coconut milk and spices to a boil then pour over the chocolate. Slowly whisk together until combined. Let cool in the refrigerator.

Tip for stuffing theses little guys. These cupcakes and pretty fragile at room temperature, so when you remove a hole from the top make sure the cupcake are cold straight from the refrigerator.

For a complete review of the cupcake throwdown with some amazing photo's, check out SpillingLight.com . But I can give you the general summary - I WON!!! I have to say it was definatly stiff competition, there was alot of very talented bakers and very yummy cupckes. Thanks to all of my friends and family that showed up and help put a few extra votes in my pocket. The grand prize that I won was a free cooking class at The Dirty Apron . Im really looking forward to taking one of their classes.

Thats yours truly ^ Thanks everyone. Happy baking.

Thomas the Train Cookies

I had so much fun making these little guys! They were for a party for the people that worked on the movie "Thomas the Tank Engine : Hero of the Rails".

They are a basic sugar cookie decorated using fondant and royal icing.

The crew loved the cookies! I also had a few extra which I gave to a co-worker who's son is obsessed with Thomas, the little guy went banana's when he got these!

GleepGlop Cake

What is a Gleepglop you might ask?

This:

This little cutie was created by a local artist. He requested a two tiered mini cake with this little guy on it for his girlfriend's birthday (who is also quiet the talented artist I might add).

End result:

The top tier was chocolate cake with chocolate ganache, and the bottom was Chiffon cake soaked in grand marnier with vanilla buttercream.

The best part for me was hearing about how happy the birthday girl was when she got this cake...

Pictures of happy clients make me so happy!

December 12th Bakers Market

Wow, what a crazy week I just had!

I dont know if I have ever done as much baking as I did this past week. Working a 40hr week baking at my day job, and then all my free time was spent baking for the Bakers Market.

But it was so fun and such a great experience, im so glad that I did it.

Thanks to everyone who came out!

Gingerbread cookies, holiday sugar cookies, vanilla bean shortbread, vegan snickerdoodle cookies, and mini fruit cakes!

Mini Fruit Cakes

The aroma of cinnamon, allspice and cardamon is filling my kitchen. Its the most amazing warm and comforting scent. Im baking fruit cakes.

The truth is fruit cake has an image problem. In the early 90's Johnny Carson of the Tonight Show joked "there was really only one fruit cake in the world - it is passed from family to family". How many people have actually given fruit cake a chance?

These mini fruit cakes are made with premium dried fruits - apricot, dates raisins and fresh cranberries. Its sweetened with honey, brown sugar and orange juice. It's also brushed with brandy to help bring out all the sweetness of the fruits, and to add extra aroma. It is seriously good stuff.

This holiday season if you have the chance, you should should give fruit cake another try. You just might be (unexpectedly)surprised.

Mini fruitcakes will be available from Le Gateau at Vancouver's Bakers Market on December. You can also order online and Le Gateau will ship within Canada and the US.

Vancouver's Bakers Market

Im happy to announce that Le Gateau will be at the Vancouver's Bakers Market on December 12th along with many other great local bakers.

Im going to be selling mini cakes, as well as an assortment of Christmas cookies and treats. I will also have an selection of vegan and gluten-free items.

Hope to see you there!

Vancouver's Bakers Market

Bourbon Pumpkin Tart with Walnut Streusel

Looking for an alternative to plain old pumpkin pie? Look no more.

I found this recipe in the magazine "Best of Fine Cooking : Parties". As I read the recipe I was imagining the taste of this tart and I got so excited, I had to try it right away. I made it this past weekend for a dinner party at a friends place. Everyone loved it! Even my sister's husband who is one of those people who hates pumpkin and pumpkin pie really enjoyed it.

Here is the Recipe:

For the tart crust:
9 oz. (2 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. finely grated orange zest
1/2 tsp. table salt
5-1/2 oz. (11 Tbs.) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup heavy cream; more if needed

For the pumpking filling:
1 15-oz. can pure solid-pack pumpkin
3 large eggs
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 Tbs. unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. table salt
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup bourbon

For the streusel topping:
3-1/2 oz. (3/4 cup) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. table salt
1/4 lb. (1/2 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3/4 cup walnut halves, toasted and coarsely chopped
1/4 cup chopped crystallized ginger

Lightly sweetened whipped cream for garnish (optional)

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Make the tart crust:

Using a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the flour, sugar, orange zest, and salt in a large bowl on low speed for about 30 seconds. Add the butter and combine on low speed until the mixture looks crumbly, with pieces of butter about the size of dried peas, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and cream, mixing on low speed until the dough is just combined. If the dough is too dry to come together, add more cream, a tablespoon at a time. Gently mold the dough into a 1-inch-thick disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or for up to a week; the dough can also be frozen for up to a month.

Make the pumpkin filling:

Spoon the pumpkin into a large bowl. Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, until thoroughly incorporated. Add both sugars and the flour, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Whisk about 30 seconds. Whisk in the heavy cream and bourbon.

Make the streusel topping:

Combine the flour, both sugars, cinnamon, and salt in a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse briefly to mix. Add the butter and pulse until the butter has blended into the dry ingredients and the mixture is crumbly. Remove the blade and stir in the walnuts and crystallized ginger.

Assemble the tart:

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F. Take the tart dough from the refrigerator and let it warm up until pliable, 5 to 15 minutes. Unwrap the dough and set it on a lightly floured work surface. With as few passes of the rolling pin as possible, roll the disk into a 13-inch round, about 3/16 inch thick. Drape the round into a 10-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom gently fitting it into the contours of the pan. Fold the excess dough into the sides of the pan and press to create an edge that’s flush with the top of the pan and about 1/2 inch thick.

Pour the pumpkin mixture into the unbaked tart crust. Scatter the streusel topping evenly over the pumpkin mixture.

Bake until the topping is evenly cooked and no longer looks wet in the center, 50 to 65 minutes. Let the tart cool on a rack for at least 2 hours before serving (or wrap it in plastic and refrigerate overnight; before serving, let it sit at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours). Serve warm, at room temperature, or slightly chilled, with lightly sweetened whipped cream, if you like.

Okay, here my confession.

I followed this recipe EXACTLY. It was suppose to make one 10" tart. However this is not what the recipe yielded when I made it. I made one 10" tart, plus I had enough filling and streusel topping for 10 more individual tarts! I was so worried that I had made a mistake, but the tarts turned out fine, so I guess the yield on the recipe is not accurate.

Also, I didn't use the tart crust recipe included, I used a basic tart dough I had leftover and stored in the freezer.

And finally, I recommend throwing in a little extra crystallized ginger into the streusel mix, because its super tasty!

The Mini's, so cute.

Trying packaging and giving these tarts as a gift. The streusel gives them support so they stack really well.