Combined post - Handmix Chocolate muffin & Melt in mouth cookie

Please pardon me for being lazy, combining my bakes into a post, but these bakes are pretty straight forward.

Early April, when I should be trying out to bake a mango mousse cake for my boy's birthday, I chickened out and did a simpler one - chocolate chip muffins (which just requires me to hand mix wet into dry). I learnt from Happy Home Baking that it is called "two bowl muffin". The baking process was pretty plain sailing as far as I can remember but as usual the muffins took longer as stated to be cooked. Still wondering if that is the reason for the chocolate chips looking burnt. Anyway, hop over to HHB's website for her fantastic recipe on this bake. I should be trying this out again, half the recipe and make them as mini muffin. Here is sharing my result.

The gooey mix

The open cups

The results

the burnt chips

chocolatey muffins

Now, this is my latest bake and one of the most satisfied one. So satisfied with the results that I gave some away. It is the (drum rolls) melt-in-mouth German cookies. Look how it caught my attention when Small Small Baker did it. Furthermore, this recipe also uses an ingredient that has been sitting there for months after I bought it for a chinese dish- the potato starch.

The process is very straight forward as I have mentioned. The "rolling dough into a ball" part is also very fun,and I guess it is suitable as a parent and child bonding recipe. The baking process is not too long but since my oven tends to take longer time to bake, I baked for a longer period and the cookies became brown (when I should not have brown it). Despite this, the cookies are so yummy, so "melt in the mouth" that I cannot stop eating. The whole family gave thumbs up for this cookie too.  Now if you did not hop over to SSB's blog to get tempted, then let my "not so well taken" photo tempt you.

Now quick go try bake it. You will not regret.

Brown sugar mini muffins

Wao, seems like I am very free? Not really, just that there is a need to have some breakfast for some days, and also I am only doing fried rice for simple dinner on some days. Ironing was done over weekend so I had the chance to bake. This is baked shortly after the cream cheese chocolate cookie.

I had wanted to try this - Brown sugar mini muffins ever since I see it in this blog. The recipe uses simple ingredients, esp one that I wish to "get rid" sooner - brown sugar. I had this pack of brown sugar for a long time. It has harden despite the fact that I put it in the fridge (in a container somemore!). Can anyone tell me how to keep the brown sugar from hardening?

I feel that this recipe is not that sinful and a little healthier because it is half fat to the flour used and it uses brown sugar instead of white sugar. Brown sugar is better isn't it? The method is also easy, everything throw into mixer in order. The only thing is, how to cream the sugar to pale and fluffy when I am using brown sugar. The creamed butter still seem brownish. Anyway, 無驚無險，the batter is mixed and then scooped into mini muffin paper cases lined inside my 12 holed mini muffin pan. The baking process is also not very eventful. The mini muffins rose as desired and browned as desired too. Very soon, the mini muffins are out. The recipe I referred to can make 14 mini muffins, but I am able to make 12 mini ones, plus 12 heart shaped one.

Yes, I bought a new pan, like the mini muffin pan but in heart shape. I cannot find heard shaped liner, thus I baked the muffins direct in it (since it is non stick pan). The end product is not so "heart" looking because I "squeeze" too much batter into each "heart" as I did not want to bake another half pan.

Here are how my mini muffins looked like.

No price guessing why is there a hole in each muffin :-)

I wondered, this recipe calls for 1.5 tsp of baking powder with 110g cake flour but how come the mini muffins are not puffing up very much?

The muffin is very soft when just out from oven but it taste good (and not too sweet)) when cooled. I feel that it is rather plain looking so perhaps when I serve the kids this, I will spread a layer of kaya or nutella on top. It will also served as a cover for the brown dotted surface. Why is the surface dotted? Brown sugar not melted?

Anyway my family big and small, all liked this muffin ..

Double Chocolate Cupcakes (take 2)

No volcanoes this time. I half the recipe and it yields 16 cups, of which 3 are slightly taller cups (brown ones at the far end).

I also reduced the sugar. Hubby says this time is not as tasty as the first, but my kids still love it the same. I know the sugar and oil ratio affects the bake, but not sure by how much. Perhaps the sugar has changed something so hubby says not as tasty.

I noticed something weird this time. The chocolate chips seemed burnt. Look at the picture below, did you see a rim of black around the melted chocolate of the chip?

Can any expert visiting my blog enlighten me?

Fresh from the oven - Brownie Muffin

It wasn't until I finished baking them just this morning that
I realised I  have baked them before.

The recipe is scribbled in my notebook, and I find the steps
easy so wanted to do it with my boy.

Very happy that my boy enjoyed himself and very happy
with myself that I can still manage to prepare lunch with this
baking session on.

Here are the lovely sinful, fattening muffins.


Please check out the recipe from JY's Baking Journal.

Like she say, the muffin is moist inside and has a crusty top.
Best of all, I do not need the mixer. However, the batter is
quite thick, so spooning into my muffin cups is a challenge.

好开心今早与孩子烘了些巧克力马芬。这食谱非常简单，
不需搅拌机，所以孩子很开心能帮上忙。赶快点击这里， 与孩
子一起做，促进亲子关系吧。

nutella cupcakes

I love nutella .. so I am very happy to see nutella cupcake
recipe. I follow the recipe from small small baker. Thanks
small small baker and precious moments.

Its so simple to do and it taste so good. Not sure if I bake them
too long cos it is a little hard (esp the crust) . I am also not
aware of the temperature since the oven thermometer is not
with me at the moment.

I reduce the sugar by 20g since it is fattening enough to have
nutella on top. Next time I will try reducing butter. The
cupcake also doesnt stick to the paper cups (the small one I
mean, big one have not tried eating).

Here's the nutella cupcake family. Not nice swirls, just don't
have the skills leh. Daddy and mummy cupcakes for home
consumption, junior cupcakes for kiddos' snack in school tmr.

Vanilla muffins/cupcakes

It has been a long break since I have been baking. School
re opens, busy with fitting into new routine.

Sunday 11pm, I suddently realise there isn't anything
for the kids to bring to school for snacks the next day. I started
to prepare muffin for the kids. This recipe is tested on them since
they had been eating more then the usual at a playgroup
gathering. This time, I sprinkle on chocolate rice, chocolate chips
since I  did not prepare any frosting. The kids still love it.

As it is so late, i did everything by hand, creaming the butter and
sugar, then I add the eggs (the recipe actually says mix all 
together). The mixture becomes like mashed tau huey. Is it
suppose to be like that ? I did not manage to get the mixture to
be smooth as it is pretty late, so i just dump in the flour, mix and
pour into paper cases. It will be edible anyway, probably just not
nice looking. So there you see, the top picture. My kids' school's
snack.

Since the previous muffin is so well received (even my hubby say
it is nice), I went ahead to try another similar recipe. Both uses
the same ingredients but in different proportion. This time, my
kids like it as much, but hubby said that the previous recipe's
taste better.

This time i use the mixer, as it involves 250g flour (previously
only ard 175g). The order of ingredient is still the same, cream
butter and sugar, add eggs, add flour, but this time, no curds.
I used chocolate rice and chocolate chips as well as the colourful
star and moon shape sugar sprinkles. ( I only want to test if the
sugar sprinkle melts, and they don't).

Very happy that I can bake snacks for the kids to bring to school.
I also realise that it is very convenient to bake muffins since I
just put the batter into cups, not much washing required after that.
A shorter cooling time. No need to cut the big cake too.

Should I start baking all the other cakes using paper cups ?
Here's the 2nd attempt with a similar recipe.



 

Double chocolate muffin with yogurt

Tried this simple recipe shared by Zu here.

Easy to prepare but it sticks to my paper cup that I use with my
mini muffin pan. Almost 1/3 of the muffin is "wasted". Luckily
those in aluminium foil cup did not really stick. Must buy proper
muffin cup to see if it is still so sticky.

The muffin taste a little chewy. Not sure have i over stir the
batter or is it meant to be the way. But it is indeed tasty since it
is chocolate milk with cocoa powder. My girl ate 3 in a go and
another 2 for night snacks!

Here's the double chocolate muffin with yogurt.