Hey! The chili was a HUGE success, requests have been made for it to be a regular meal! So, with that triumph in mind, do you have any other Palomino recipes to share? I'd love to try something else!
Hi love! I'm so thrilled that the chili was a hit, and do I have more Palomino recipes for you! Many of the dishes that showed up in the series are my favourites, and if people are interested, I definitely have more to share 😘
Poppy’s chocolate & rum cupcakes
Darlin's birthday cake featured in Part IV Strawberry Roan is inspired by my own favourite recipe - the chocolate and rum cake. However, since the cake is super rich and heavy, I prefer to make them as cupcakes (pictured are my mini cupcakes and I pair them with fresh strawberries), but you can adapt this recipe for a cake as well.
You taste chocolate on his tongue - and dark rum, must be Poppy's secret ingredient - as it moulds around yours.
As mentioned in the fic, rum is the secret ingredient to this recipe. I've been using this recipe for about 8 years now, and it's adapted for my typical Asian palate i.e. it's not too sweet, and the dark rum gives it a deep flavour and aftertaste that goes perfectly with the chocolate.
Important: The type of cocoa powder makes all the difference. Recently, I've been using Ghirardelli and I love it, it's silky smooth and it has so much depth to the flavour. Alternatively, I used to use a blend of Valrhona and regular cocoa powder (just regular Cadbury drinking cocoa), about 3/4 Valrhona to 1/4 regular cocoa powder. I wouldn't use all Valrhona because it is too dense and it affects the texture of the cake.
Full recipe below the cut:
This is actually the first cake recipe I've ever shared, so apologies in advance if the batch numbers are not completely accurate! The recipe officially makes 36 mini cupcakes, but the output may be a bit more generous since I used to sell these, I always made a few more to take into account margin for error. This recipe should make 12 regular cupcakes.
For the cake:
The chocolate mixture
60g dark chocolate (I use 70% chocolate), chopped
0.6 cup boiling water
0.5 tablespoon espresso powder
6 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder (see my note above the cut)
The dry ingredients
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
Wet ingredients
118g unsalted butter, soft
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1.5 eggs (it’s a forgiving recipe - 1 large egg will do as well)
1/4 cup buttermilk
Directions
Make the chocolate mixture first as it needs to cool down before use. Chop up the chocolate into pieces small enough to be melted by boiling water.
Mix the cocoa powder and espresso powder with boiling water, then pour over the chopped chocolate. Stir until chocolate is completely melted and let cool.
Prepare the dry ingredients by stirring everything together in a bowl.
Using a stand mixer or a hand mixer, cream together butter and both sugars until incorporated. Do not overbeat.
Mix in vanilla extract and eggs until well combined, and scrape down the sides and bottom of the mixing bowl.
Pour the cooled chocolate mixture into the wet ingredients and mix until combined. Do not overbeat, scrape down the bowl again.
Alternatively add the dry ingredients and buttermilk to the mixing bowl. Always lead with the dry ingredients, and follow with buttermilk to ensure you don't add too much liquid. The batter should be silky and smooth, but not runny i.e. when you scoop it up with a spoon, it should be the texture of very soft soft serve, but it shouldn't dribble.
It depends on your oven, but for me, this batter doesn't rise a lot, so I fill up the cupcake liners to about 3/4 full. I suggest you bake one cupcake first to test how full you should fill it, and the time it takes. For mini cupcakes, I bake at 150C and check around the 15 minute mark, and they usually take 20 minutes. For regular cupcakes, I would check around the 20 minute mark, they might take up to 30 minutes.
A cupcake is done when it springs back when you press on it and your fingertip doesn't leave a dent. Don't overbake.
Let the cupcakes cool down completely before frosting.
Edit: I forgot to add that I poke little holes in the cupcakes with a toothpick and feed each one with rum before frosting!
For the buttercream:
I always make too much buttercream, because there's nothing quite as frustrating as not having enough for your last cupcake! And trust me, this buttercream is so good you can eat it off a spoon. So put any spare in a mason jar and enjoy it!
125g unsalted butter, cubed and softened at room temperature
1.8 cups powdered sugar
0.5 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder
0.3 cup heavy whipping cream
pinch of salt
1.6 tablespoon rum
Directions
Beat butter until it's soft and sticks to the side of the bowl in soft strips. When you scrape down with a spatula, you should meet no resistance and it should slide smoothly down the side of the bowl.
Add powdered sugar in half cups, scraping down the sides and bottoms of the bowl in between until the texture reaches the consistency of buttercream.
Alternatively mix in cocoa powder and whipping cream, always starting with the powder and ending with the cream. Add just enough cream for the the powder to incorporate into the frosting.
Add the rum bit by bit with the mixer on the slowest setting to make sure the buttercream isn't too wet - it will curdle if it does, and you want the buttercream to have enough structural integrity to pipe.
These cupcakes can be frozen frosted or unfrosted, and imho they taste even better when allowed to 'age'. Keep in freezer for up to 3 weeks, thaw in fridge overnight before eating. Pair with fresh berries, it's lovely when you have the acidity to cut through the richness! I hope this recipe makes sense and turns out well!
If you like to cook/bake, your f/o would love all of the food you make
Your f/o would always praise the food you make, and would always appreciate what you do for them because anything you do is amazing to them, even if it is just something simple
Anyone else just have a strong hate for using yeast in their recipes? Like you just see the word yeast in the ingredients and go; oh! Seems like I need to search smth else!
Baking rll helps my mind calm down and focus which is rll nice! The problem is is that its the only thing that will help me 80% of the time and I have to much baked goods!
