Baking with Elliott

Rainbow Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon rolls – they are easily my favourite baked good, ever. They are sweet and rich but not too much, no matter where I go, I will always opt for the cinnamon roll and I’ve eaten my fair share of them.

These are slightly different to my usual recipe, they are brightly coloured – they are a rainbow version. Theres no difference in the flavour but these were for Birmingham Pride which is this weekend in Birmingham.

If you’re making these, they are perfect for the cinnamon roll fan, as well as the rainbow fan in your life. It all starts with an enriched dough, which has butter, sugar and egg in, partnered with the sweet and spiced light brown sugar and cinnamon filling and lastly finished with a sweet and tangy cream cheese icing – you can’t go wrong.

On a positive note, these are fun and easy to make and they’re huge – especially compared to most places I’ve had cinnamon rolls from in the past.

Anyway, lets get started, shall we?

Ingredients:

Cinnamon roll dough:

500g strong white bread flour.

8g salt.

7g yeast.

75g butter, at room temperature.

75g granulated sugar.

15g milk powder, full fat.

1 egg.

175ml water.

Food colouring paste/gels (red, orange, yellow green, blue and purple).

Filling:

175g butter, room temperature.

175g light brown sugar.

ground cinnamon (as much or as little as you’d like).

Cream cheese icing:

85g soft cheese, at room temperature.

60g butter, at room temperature.

200g icing sugar.

1 tsp vanilla extract.

Red food colouring.

Method:

Before you get into any baking, you’ll want to do some prep work first. Take the time to weigh up all the ingredients, lightly oil a bowl and get any equipment ready. When the time comes, preheat your oven to 180˚c/350˚f.

To start on the bread dough, place the bread flour and salt into a bowl and give it a good mix to incorporate the two together.

Then place the remaining ingredients into the bowl, then mix them all together on a low speed for 2 minutes, followed by a further 4-6 minutes on a medium-high speed until a dough has formed. The dough should be soft, if it’s sticky, add a little flour.

Knead the dough until the dough is smooth and elasticated. This takes around 5-7 minutes, depending on how well mixed it was in the first place. You can then process the ought straight away, so scale into 6 equal balls of dough ands then colour them the colours of the rainbows. Round the balls of dough, then place onto a lined tray and cover loosely with clingfilm and allow to prove until dough in size.

Take each of the coloured balls of dough and roll them into long sausage shapes – around 10 inches in length. Roll them close together so they batch once rolled out – they don’t have to be perfect as that would be difficult to achieve (plus imperfect lines make it a little more tie dye looking).

You’re looking for the dough to be around 30cm x 20cm, it should be rectangular.

Spread the room temperature butter all over the top of the dough, getting as even layer as possible. You can then go ahead sprinkle over the light brown sugar,a agin ensuring even coverage all over and to finish the filling, sprinkle over ground cinnamon (use as much or as little as you’d like – I used a lot as I really like cinnamon).

I’m making 8 larger cinnamon rolls, rather than my usual smaller version. I take my dough and cut it into 8 equal parts (trimming away any messy edges from the outer edge), roll them up into 8 rolls (you can do it any other way that works for you also, the is the way I like and prefer, personally).

Place the rolls into a lined 9×13 inch baking pan and cover with clingfilm, leave somewhere warm and allow them to prove until they have risen well, they should be batched together by the end of the time. How long this will take will vary on how warm it is – try not to exceed 30-35˚c.

Once you see the rolls have just about proved to the right amount, preheat your oven to 180˚c/350˚c.

Bake in your preheated oven at 180˚c/350˚f for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

While your cinnamon rolls are baking in the oven, it’s the perfect time to make the cream cheese icing which will top the rolls.

Into your mixing bowl of choice, place the cream cheese, butter, icing sugar and vanilla extract. Beat together on a medium-high speed until all of the ingredients have become fully combined and there mixture is smooth and well combined.

Set the cream cheese icing aside until its needed later.

Now that the cinnamon buns are baked, remove from the oven and allow to cool down, almost fully before you finish them off.

Now you can start to add the cream cheese icing on to the buns. I wanted to do something a little different, so piped the cream cheese icing into heart, topped the heart with rainbow sprinkles and you’e done.

These are a little different but honestly, they taste so good – you’ll be missing out if you didn’t make them.

Well, that’s how you make cinnamon rolls my way. They are (fairly?) quick and easy to make, which makes them that bit more enjoyable. If you make too many, bake them off, then wrap them with some cling film and place into the freezer. You can keep the rolls in the freeze for up to 3 months, just make fresh cream cheese icing when you take them out.

That’s all for today guys, I hope you enjoyed. If you did, don’t forget to share this recipe with your family and friends and enjoy it. I’ll be back soon with another blog post and YouTube video, so join me then. In the meanwhile, don’t forget to check out my other social’s – Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. The YouTube tutorial will be linked down below.

Red Velvet Cake with Ermine Frosting

by bakingwithelliott Leave a Comment

The classic and humble red velvet is always a crowd pleaser, thats without a doubt – when you partner that with the ermine frosting, you have a winning combination.

Seeing as its King Charles III’s coronation weekend here in the UK (as well as other areas/regions), what a better way to celebrate then with cake… This cake will really add something to your celebrations – so regardless of whether your fan of the royals or not, celebrating or not, get a cake made!

No matter where you go, they’ll have a red velvet cake, this chocolatey-vanillary cake is wonderful but usually it comes with a cream cheese icing but originally, through researching, it was with an ermine frosting and seeing as someone on YouTube wanted to see a recipe for a red velvet care with ermine frosting – so here you are!

You may know this cake for being a little different… It uses bicarbonate of soda as the raising agent and has both chocolate and vanilla flavours.

Anyway, let’s get started, shall we?

Ingredients:

Cake:

Red Food paste/gel.

20g Cocoa powder.

1 tsp Vanilla extract.

125g Butter.

300g Granulated sugar.

3 Eggs.

190g Plain flour.

1/4 tsp Salt.

125ml Buttermilk.

1/2 tsp Bicarbonate of soda.

1 1/2 tsp White vinegar.

Ermine Frosting:

200g granulated sugar.

40g plain flour.

1/4 tsp salt.

225g whole milk.

225g unsalted butter, at room temperature.

1 tsp vanilla extract.

Decoration:

Red, white and blue sprinkles (optional).

Method:

Cake:

Before you get started on the recipe, you’ll want to do some prep. I recommend you start by weighing up all of the ingredients, lining the 6 inch round cake tins with some parchment paper (or butter and line them), preheat your oven to 180˚c/350˚f and grab any equipment you may need, such as a mixer, mixing bowl and silicon spatula.

To start on the cake, you’ll want to grab a small mixing bowl and place in the red food colouring gel/paste and vanilla extract. Mix everything together until you have a dark red thick paste and set aside until you need it later on.

Then in another bowl place the butter and granulated sugar, then beat together until they are lighter and fluffier in colour and consistency.

You can then go ahead and give the bowl a good scraping down, just to incorporate any bits that may not have been fully worked in from earlier on.

Add in your eggs, one at a time, beating well in-between each addition. Once all of the eggs have been added and are incorporated, you will want to give the bowl a quick scraping down.

Now you can take the red cocoa powder mixture you made earlier and add all of it into the mixing bowl and mix on a medium-high speed until the mixture has become a solid red colour.

Then you can go ahead and add around a third of the flour, mixing that in until its fully incorporated then alternate with the buttermilk until you have none of either left over. One thing to note is that you should start with dry and end with dry.

Give the bowl a good scraping down, just to incorporate any bits that may not have been fully worked in.

Then you can go ahead and add in the bicarbonate of soda and directly on top add the white vinegar – this should fizzle and react (this is completely normal, it’s a chemical reaction. Fold those two into the cake batter until it’s been fully worked in.

Split the cake batter between your two lined cake tins and place into the preheated oven and bake for 20-25 minutes or until they are well risen (and a tester comes out clean when inserted into the centre).

Ermine Frosting:

Place the flour and sugar in a saucepan and toast on medium high heat for a couple of minutes to cook the flour – you will notice a change in colour, this is normal.

Add in your milk and stir to combine, bring it to simmer and reduce to medium heat. Continue to coo until the mixture thickens – make sure you stir constantly to prevent the milk from catching on the bottom of the pan.

Pour the mixture into a heat-proof bowl and cover with plastic wrap – make sure the clingfilm touches the surface of the mixture and let it cool fully. I placed mine in the fridge but you can also spread it thinly on a lined baking tray and cover with clingfilm (touching the surface of course), this will also help it cool quicker.

Place your butter in the bowl of your stand mixer with the whisk attached – whisk until lighter and fluffier in colour and consistency. Now add your flour mixture into your butter a little at a time, allow it to fully incorporate in-between additions.

Add in your vanilla and mix well, then you’re done with the frosting. This frosting is better off used straight away, if possible.

Decorating:

You can decorate this however you’d like, I ept it very simple by just piping the frosting in blobs around the cake, leaving the sides exposed but you can do it however you’d like.

When it came to the top of the cake, I simply layered the blobs on top of each other until it looked like a flower and the top of the cake was filled it – I also just used some red, white and blue sprinkles as this cake was made for the coronation celebrations but you can use whatever you’d like (or leave it plain).

I like to chill the cake for a little, especially if it’s slightly warm. Enjoy the cake within 2- 3 days.

Carrot Cake

by bakingwithelliott Leave a Comment

I’m not sure if its just me but now Spring has sprung and things are getting a little better – its time for carrot cake.

Carrot cake is a classic amongst the cake flavours available, everywhere you go they will have some variation of it and thats perfect – its a tender and most cake that can’t be faulted, especially when partnered with a cream cheese icing, which is tangy and works perfectly with this cake as its not a super heavy buttercream.

I don’t know what it is about carrot cake but whenever I have it, it reminds me of spring and that time around Easter – I can’t think of a reason but this is fitting for whatever reason.

This is just my version of a carrot cake, I have included walnuts and raisins because I like them – a very welcome addition.

Anyway, lets get started, shall we?

Ingredients:

Cake:

225g butter, at room temperature.

225g light brown sugar.

4 eggs.

225g self raising flour.

3/4 tsp baking powder.

2 tsp ground cinnamon.

1 tsp ground ginger.

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg.

60g walnuts, roughly chopped.

60g raisins.

1 orange, zest.

225g grated carrot.

Cream Cheese Icing:

350g butter.

350g icing sugar.

200g cream cheese, at room temperature.

Decoration:

Walnuts, roughly chopped.

Method:

To get started on the recipe, you’ll want to do some prep work. I like to start by weighing up all of my ingredients, preparing my cake tins and getting any equipment I may need such as a stand mixer and spatula.

I like to make the cakes first but you can work in whichever order works best for you!

To start on the cakes, take a mixing bowl and place in the butter and sugar, cream them together until they are lighter and fluffier in colour and consistency (for me this was around 7-10 minutes).

Now you can add in the eggs, one at a time beating well in-between each addition – take your time when adding the eggs.

Once all of the eggs have been added you can go ahead and give the bowl a good scraping down – this is just to incorporate any bits that may not have been fully incorporated into the mixture previously.

Add in the dry ingredients and mix on a low speed to start with, working your way up to a medium-high speed until the dry ingredients have been incorporated.

Now you can add in carrot and raisins, mixing in until they have been fully incorporated.

Give the bowl a good scraping down to ensure any bits that wasn’t fully worked in from earlier on.

Divide the cake batter between your 3×6 inch cake tins, spread and level then bake for 30 minutes (or until a tester comes out clean).

To make the cream cheese icing, take a bowl and place in the butter and icing sugar – beat the two together until they are lighter and fluffier in colour and consistency, this may take a little while.

Once you’ve achieved the desired consistency, you can gradually add in the soft cheese – don’t add it all at once, please take your time when adding it into the mix.

Now you have your cakes baked and cooled and the buttercream made, you can go ahead and finish the cake. I kept things super simple by not decorating the sides of the cake, as I don’t like a lot of frosting on cakes and this is the perfect way for me.

I simply pipe blobs around the outer edge , then fill the centre in, placing the next layer of cake on top and repeat the process. On the very top, I simply pipe rows of blobs and get a flower looking pattern on top – I cover the centre with some roughly broken walnuts and then its done!

Tiramisu

by bakingwithelliott Leave a Comment

It’s finally time to share my take on a tiramisu – although it may not be the most traditional method or serving, it still yields a super tasty recipe, believe me.

I have been working on this recipe for some time and in January I decided to start spreading a little more positivity, in the form of something baked – this time it was a tiramisu. Something I’d only made in practice and not really shared with friends, well this in showtime.

For this recipe, I have made each element from scratch, which isn’t something you have to do but it really helps to make it that bit extra special – believe me. People really do appreciate when you make the something homemade (and if they don’t, don’t waste your time on them again).

I made the sponge fingers from scratch, which aren’t super difficult but are 100 times better than buying them ready made at there store (although these can be used, not an issue).

Anyway, lets get started, shall we?

Ingredients:

Sponge Fingers:

6 eggs, separated.

190g granulated sugar.

180g plain flour.

Icing sugar (for dusting).

Tiramisu Mix:

500g mascarpone cheese.

4 eggs.

100g granulated sugar.

300ml espresso (for the best flavour and results).

2 tbsp marsala wine (if you’re using alcohol).

Unsweetened cocoa powder (I used one with gold lustre in for added finish).

Method:

Before you get started on the recipe, you’ll want to do some prep work. I like to start by weighing up all of my ingredients, lining my baking trays with parchment and getting any other equipment such as a stand mixer and whisk ready. Preheat your oven to 220˚c.

Sponge fingers:

To start, take your yolks and roughly 3/4 of the granulated sugar, then whisk until they are thickened and reached a stage known as the ribbon stage (this is where you can take the whisk and write the letter ‘R’ with the mixture and it’s still there once you’ve made it), if its not, continue to mix until its at this stage.

In a separate bowl, whisk egg whites until you reach soft peaks. Then you can add the sugar in small amounts, whisking until it’s fully incorporated in-between each addition. The end result should be a thick, smooth and glossy meringue.

Into the yolk mixture, add around 1/3 of the whites, fold using a metal spoon (this is thinner compared to a spatula and if mixed correctly, shouldn’t knock as much air out), until its fully incorporated.

Now you can go ahead and add in the flour, thats been sieved to ensure theres no lumps at all. Fold the flour in until its fully incorporated into the mix – it should have thickened the consistency considerably.

Add in the remain egg white mixture in 2 more additions, being careful not to knock the air out of the picture – otherwise you will need to start again.

Transfer the cake mix into a piping bag fitted with a 1cm round piping tip. pipe your fingers about 4 inches each, leaving some space in-between each as they will spread while baking – I used two baking trays but you may need more or less.

If you’re looking too get that crackly top on the fingers, generously dust them with icing sugar and then place them into the preheated oven and bake for 4-8 minutes – they should only be lightly coloured and not too dark.

Tiramisu mix:

Before you get started on making the tiramisu mix, you’ll want to make your coffee – so a lot of espresso (around 300ml roughly). If you’r using marsala wine, add it directly into the coffee, mix and set aside until needed later on.

Start on the mix, simply separate eggs into white and yolk. Whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks and set aside until needed later on.

Whisk your egg yolks and sugar together until smooth and light – around 3-5 minutes should be perfect.

Into a separate bowl, add the mascarpone cheese and mix it around to soften it – once you’ve done this, add the cheese into the egg yolk mix a little at a time, whisking until everything is fully incorporated and well combined – the mixture should be smooth in the end. For this around 2-3 minutes would be ideal.

Add the stiff egg whites into the mixture – don’t forget to incorporate the whites well – get right into the bottom, ensuring its all well combined.

Assembly:

Got start the assembly of the tiramisu, you will want to make sure you have your tray ready (I used a small one and made some minis for the rest of the people at work).

Dip your sponge fingers into the coffee mixture for 1-2 seconds, don’t allow them to become super soggy or to break, thats not what you want. Place the fingers into the base of the tray you’re using, arrange their fingers into the neatest formation you can – consistency is key for a dessert like this. Top the sponge fingers with the mascapone picture, ensuring there is good coverage – then repeat the layering of coffee soaked sponge fingers and mascarpone mix – you may have many layers but mine had two, which was perfect.

Once you have it layered, finish it quite simply by dusting generously with a layer of unsweetened cocoa powder -make sure you get even coverage all over.

I then recommend you chill in the fridge fort a minimum of 3 hours bit overnight would be better and more idea. Now serve and enjoy!

Mini Egg Cake

by bakingwithelliott Leave a Comment

It’s officially the Easter weekend and I know you have a truckload of chocolate – what are you going to make? I tell you, how about this mini egg cake?

It’s a quick and easy way of impressing your guests this Easter with a cake that uses some of those chocolates you have sitting around (or like me, since January when mini eggs were first back in store), get the cake tins ready – you’re about to get your bake on.

This cake looks somewhat festive due to the mini egg coloured buttercream, otherwise this cake consists of 3 layers of chocolate cake, filled with vanilla French meringue buttercream, coated in mini egg coloured buttercream, finished with a chocolate drip, rosettes and mini eggs.

Sound like something youd like? Give it a try today!

Anyway, lets get started, shall we?

Ingredients:

Cake:

345g granulated sugar.

200g plain flour.

50g cocoa powder.

1.5 tsp baking powder.

1.5 tsp bicarbonate of soda.

200ml milk.

4 eggs.

45ml vegetable oil.

1.5 tsp vanilla extract.

185ml boiling water.

Buttercream:

250g granulated sugar.

65ml water.

70g egg yolks.

1 whole egg.

500g butter, room temperature.

Ganache:

60g dark chocolate.

40g milk chocolate.

100ml double cream

Decoration:

Mini Eggs.

Methods:

Before you get started on the recipe, you’ll want to do some prep work. Starting by weighing up all of your ingredients, preheating your oven to 180˚/350˚f and get any equipment you may need ready, such a mixing bowl and whisk. Don’t forget to line your baking pans with parchment.

To start on the recipe, you’ll want to start by placing the granulate sugar, plain flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl, passing though a sieve first to remove any lumps that may be in the dry mix. Once they have been sifted, whisk together with a whisk – set aside until needed later on.

Into another mixing bowl you’ll want to combine the wet ingredients, which are the milk, vegetable oil, chocolate and vanilla extract, whisk them together until everything is fully combined.

You can then add the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until everything is combined and you have a semi thick cake batter – it should look slightly granular, this is normal.

Now you can take the boiling water and add it into the cake batter – this may sound unconventional but for this recipe it works and makes the best chocolate cake recipe.

For ease, you can transfer the cake batter into a jug. This is optional and can be poured from a bowl if preferred.

Grab your cake tins that have been lined with parchment and pour the batter into them – distributing the cake batter equally between the can tins, as this helps them raise the perfect amount once baked. Once all of your cases have been filled, you can transfer the pan into your preheated oven and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a tester comes out clean when inserted into the centre.

For the French meringue buttercream, I have a recipe already typed up for it – so check it out here. The only difference is the addition of some food colouring to make the cake look a little more festive.

Once you have everything made and ready, you can start the assembly of the cake. To start, take a cake stand/board/plate and place a small blob of buttercream into the centre, then place your first layer off cake onto it, pressing down to secure it in place. Pipe a ring of buttercream around the outer edge off the cake then fill in the centre of the ring with the same buttercream. Repeat the process u until all of the layers of cake have been used up.

I then like to pipe the buttercream around the cake, as neatly as possibly but it doesn’t need to be perfect, as when we are smoothing it out, it will fill many of the gaps. Take your scraper and scrape around the edge, until you have a smooth enough finish, this is really up to you but most like quite a neat finish.

Around the bottom edge of the cake, take your sprinkles and make a boarder around, I used Easter sprinkles but you can use whatever you like.

Chill the cake in the fridge for a minimum of 30-45 minutes, it makes the cake easier to work with and less likely to move while decorating.

To help keep things simple, I have decided to make a basic drip, which is where I place my chocolates into a bowl and pour over the hot cream, allow to sit for a moment, then stir until smooth and glossy. Transfer into a piping bag or or squeeze bottle.

Go around the outer upper edge and pipe your drips, a combination of both short and long ones will help enhance the look. Pipe rosettes around the edge of the cake, then top each with mini eggs.

Fill in the top of the cake with the remaining ganache, while its still stick. Chill in the fridge for a short while, before finishing it. slicing. Then you can go ahead and enjoy!

Terry’s Chocolate Orange Easter Cookies

by bakingwithelliott Leave a Comment

It’s the Easter weekend, so why don’t you take it easy with these Terry’s chocolate orange cookies? The perfect addition to your Easter baking that can be shared with your friends and family.

Easter is already a stressful time, so why not eliminate some of that stress by using some of those easter treats in these cookies – I promise you won’t regret it!

If you’re celebrating Easter – I hope you have a wonderful day and if you’re not, I hope you have a wonderful day!

Anyway, lets get started, shall we?

Ingredients:

75g butter, at room temperature.

75g light brown sugar.

75g granulated sugar.

1 egg.

1 tsp vanilla extract.

1 tsp orange paste/extract.

225g plain flour.

25g cocoa powder.

1/2 tsp baking powder.

200g terry’s white chocolate orange, roughly chopped (plus extra for on top of the cookies).

Method:

Before you get started on the recipe, you’ll want to do some prep work. Start by preheating your oven to 180˚c/350˚f, weighing up all of your ingredients, line your baking trays with parchment paper and get ay equipment you may need, such as a stand mixer (with a beater attachment), spatula and ice cream/cookie scoop.

To get started on the cookie dough, take a mixing bowl and place in the butter, granulated sugar and light brown sugar. Then beat them all together until they are well combined. – the mixture should be lighter and fluffier, in colour and consistency.

Once you’ve achieved that consistency, you can then go ahead and give the bowl a good scraping down, just to incorporate any bits that may not have been fully incorporated.

Then add the egg, beating well – you will notice the consistency change as you add the eggs in, this is completely normal and you shouldn’t worry about it too much, unless the mixture has scrambled (which it shouldn’t do).

Add your vanilla and orange extracts at this stage.

Then go ahead and give the bowl another scraping down, again just to incorporate any bits that may not have been fully worked in from earlier on.1

Now add in the plain flour, cocoa powderbaking powder and salt, passing them through a sieve first, just to remove any lumps that may be in the dry mix. You can then add in the chocolate orange.

Fold all of the drey ingredients in by hand, this is to achieve the best consistency possible. Try your best not over mix the dough, as it will ruin the texture of the cookies.

As the dough doesn’t need chilling, you can process it straight away. Take your scoop and scoop up a generous amount of the cookie dough, ensuring its’s level with the scoop – then roll it in your hands until its smooth, flatten and fill the centre of the cookies with cranberry sauce then round off and place onto a lined baking tray and bake them off.

When you place the cookies onto the baking trays, allow them to have space around them as they do grow and expand while baking and you ideally don’t want them to batch together.

Once you have your trays filled, you can go ahead and place them into your preheated oven and bake for 18-22 minutes. I recommend checking them at 18 minutes but they may need more time.

Immediately once they are removed from the oven, top each cookie with a 1 segment and three mini Terry’s chocolate orange eggs and allow to firm up.

Although it may be tempting to eat these straight from the oven, allow them to cool to the stage where you can pick them up at least. They are best enjoyed warm or at least reheated!

Mini Egg No Bake Cheesecake Slices

by bakingwithelliott Leave a Comment

Cheesecake is always a good idea, especially these mini egg no bake cheesecake slices.

If you’re a fan of the simpler things in life, these cheesecake slices are for you! They are like a traditional cheesecake, just in slice form – you have a buttery biscuit base, mini egg vanilla cheesecake, topped with freshly whipped sweetened cream and mini eggs – the perfect easter treat, you can make and forget.

May not be the most festive for Easter but in a subtle way, its more than enough!

Anyway, lets get started, shall we?

Base:

250g digestive biscuits.

100g butter, melted.

Cheesecake:

600g soft cheese, t room temperature.

100g icing sugar.

2 tsp vanilla extract.

250g mini eggs, roughly crushed.

300ml double cream, cold from the fridge.

Topping:

300ml double cream, cold from the fridge.

50g icing sugar.

1 tsp vanilla extract.

Method:

Before you get started on the recipe, you’ll want to do some prep work. Start by weighing up all of your ingredients, grabbing your 9×9 inch square cake pan and grab any equipment you may need such as a hand mixer and mixing bowl/stand mixer and bowl.

To start on the recipe, you’ll want to work on the base. Take your biscuits and crush them into a fine crumb, it should resemble sand – I used a food processor but feel free to place the biscuits into a food safe bag and crush them until you get a sand like consistency.

Now add the melted butter and combine the two until they are fully incorporated – you’ll know once they are combined as the mixture will now resemble wet sand.

Transfer then mixture into the base of your lined 9×9 inch square cake tin and spread it around and compress it to secure in place.

To make the filling, place the soft cheese, icing sugar along with the vanilla extract into a bowl and beat until they are fully incorporated. All of the ingredients should be well combined and the mixture should be pretty thick – being able to hold its shape.

Now go ahead and add in the double cream and whisk until the mixture is thicker in consistency, it should be able to hold its shape well.

Now is the perfect time to add the mini eggs in, just fill them into the mixture, just until hey are fairly distributed throughout the mixture.

Pour the mixture into the tin and level it out using a cranked/off-set palette knife and smooth it off the best you can.

You can place these in the fridge to firm up for a couple of hours (I recommend making this the night before you need it, that way you’re not just waiting for the cheesecake to set).

For the whipped cream topping, simply place double cream, icing sugar and vanilla into a bowl and whip until it’s thickened to stiff peaks. Place into a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle and set aside until needed.

To finish the cheesecake, slice the tray into as many or as few slices as you’d like, then pipe over a zigzag of freshly whipped cream and then sprinkle over some grated dark chocolate.

Don’t forget to finish off the cheesecake squares with one of each coloured mini egg on top and you’re done.

White Chocolate Cadbury Creme Egg Blondies

by bakingwithelliott Leave a Comment

White chocolate creme eggs are something else, they’re like a regular creme egg but even better – especially on these blondies. Seeing as Easter is just around the corner, I thought I’d get my bake on and share as many simple themed recipes as possible – this is way easier considering how many options we have access to in stores this year.

I know that white chocolate creme eggs aren’t new BUT I’m unsure whether they’re sold worldwide or if people have used them in their bakes the same way I have here.

You can’t go wrong with a classic blondie, on its own, is pretty impressive – when you add things like creme eggs on, only enhances them further… C’mon, you don’t have to agree but you know they’re good.

This tray can be made a couple of days ahead of time, especially of you’re having a Easter gathering or doing something, you may not have time – they also freeze wonderfully!

Anyway, let’s get started, shall we?

Ingredients:

250g white chocolate.

165g butter.

200g granulated sugar.

235g plain flour.

1/2 tsp salt.

4 eggs.

1 tsp vanilla extract.

200g white chocolate chips.

5 white chocolate creme eggs, halved.

Method:

Before you get into making the blondies, you’ll want to do some prep work. Start by weighing up all of your ingredients, line your 8 inch square tin and preheat your oven to 180˚c/350˚f and get any equipment you intend on using.

Into a heatproof bowl, place your butter and white chocolate and melt them over a bain-marie (which is over a medium heat) or in a microwave in 10 second intervals, try your best not to get the mixture too hot. If this happens, the mixture may split.

Once the butter and chocolate are melted, add in your sugar and straight away whisk it in, until it has been fully incorporated.

Now you can add in all of your eggs and vanilla extract and whisk until everything is smooth and the consistency has become looser in consistency.

Next you can add in the plain flour, salt and white chocolate chips. Mix until the dry ingredients have been fully incorporated, try your best not to over mix.

Take your lined 9×9 tin and pour your blondie batter into the tin and level it out as best you can.

Place in the preheated oven and bake for about 25-30 minutes or until a tester comes out clean when inserted into the centre

Once they are fully baked, remove from the oven and finish them off. Take the white chocolate creme egg halves and place them on top, pressing them into the blondie. Allow them to cool down fully before you try and remove them from the tin. Once completely cooled down, place the tin into the fridge (this is to help them be as dense and fudgy as possible) overnight or until the following day.

Kulich (Russian Easter Bread)

by bakingwithelliott Leave a Comment

Today I’m sharing my take on a Kulich – a little different as I’m making individual ones rather than one large one. I find the smaller ones are more enjoyable and can be shared more easily amongst friends and family.

I won’t lie, it had been some time since I made one of these last time, probably about 6-7 years. However, I was going through my old notes and found a full written recipe and method, so thought now would be the ideal time to share the recipe with you.

Although this may not be the most traditional recipe available, it’s a pretty stable and easy recipe. A Kulich is a traditional Russian Easter bread, it’s enjoyed by many countries which has an orthodox christian population. It’s notably consumed between Easter and the pentecost – it’s very similar to an Italian panettone but a kulich is heavier and more dense.

Anyway, lets get started, shall we?

Ingredients:

Bread Dough:

150g strong white bread flour.

125g plain flour.

1/2 tsp salt.

1 tsp ground cinnamon.

7g dries yeast.

100ml milk, tepid.

50g butter.

50g granulated sugar.

2 eggs.

50g raisins.

1 tsp almonds, chopped (I used flakes but it all works).

Glaze:

225g icing sugar.

3 tbsp milk (or as many as needed to get the desired consistency).

100s and 1000s.

Method:

To get started on the recipe, y0u’ll want to do some prep work. I like to start by weighing up all of the ingredients, lightly oiling a bowl with some flavourless oil and get stay equipment you may need, such as a mixing bowl and dough hook. When the time comes, preheat your oven to 180˚c/350˚f.

To start on the dough, take a mixing bowl and place in both the flours and salt – mix them together until they are well combined. No go ahead and add in the remainder of the ingredients and then mix on a low speed to start with, working your way up to a medium high speed. The dough won’t really pull away from the sides of the bowl like a usual dough, as this is enriched and much stickier to handle.

Transfer the dough into a lightly oiled bowl and cover with clingfilm, then leave it somewhere warm and allow to prove. It should double in size, almost touching the top of the bowl – the amount of time this takes will vary due to factors like climate and humidity.

Once the dough has doubled in size, you can go ahead and knock it back. This is the process of removing the gasses that have built up in the dough during the first prove.

Now is the perfect time to process the dough, so simply scale into 100g balls of dough and round them off into more rounded shapes, then place into your individual cases, cover loosely with closing film and allow to have the second prove, just until the dough has domed and is touching the top of the case – this is how you know its time to finish them by baking.

Simply, remove the clingfilm from on the dough and then place into your preheated oven and bake for 14-16 minutes or until they’re well coloured on top.

Once baked, remove the Kulichs from the cases, I used disposable ones but you can use silicon if you’d prefer. Cool on a cooling rack and once cool enough make the icing glaze.

For the icing, simply place icing sugar into a bowl and add enough milk into the icing sugar, so you have a thick but spreadable consistency, this is best made as you intend to use it.

Pipe the icing over the top, allowing to drip down the side a little but not majorly. Finish each with a generous sprinkling of 100s and 1000s or similar sprinkles.

Enjoy – best enjoyed on the day or the day after.

Chocolate Bunny Cupcakes

by bakingwithelliott Leave a Comment

It’s now officially Spring, which means many things BUT it means Easter is around the corner, so here is my first Easter themed blog post of 2023.

I can’t believe how bad I’ve been at uploading on here and my YouTube channel this year but thats all about to change, as I’ve had some time off work and been able to focus on getting som content made – just the process of editing and uploading – so you may be seeing me a little more often over the Easter period (shhhh, just in case I go missing again).

The start of the Easter themed baking comes in the form of these chocolate bunny cupcakes… A super simple yet effective way of celebrating. These consist of a chocolate cupcake, topped with a chocolate French meringue buttercream, chocolate ganache and a whole chocolate bunny. This is a lot of chocolate but not in a overly sickly way – so for the chocoholic, its the perfect recipe!

Anyway, let’s keep things short and sweet – there’ll be plenty coming from me in the coming weeks. Let’s get started, shall we?

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:

175g butter, room temperature.

175g granulated sugar.

2 eggs.

1 tsp vanilla extract.

145g plain flour.

30g cocoa powder.

1 tsp baking powder.

2-3 tbsp whole milk (to achieve the perfect consistency).

Buttercream:

125g granulated sugar.

31ml water.

35g eggs yolks.

1 whole egg.

250g butter, room temperature.

200g dark chocolate, melted and cooled ensuring its not hot.

20g cocoa powder.

Decoration:

Ganache (60g dark chocolate + 40g milk chocolate + 100ml double cream).

Easter sprinkles (optional).

12 mini chocolate bunnies (I used the ones available in M&S here in the UK).

Method:

Before you et started on the recipe, you’ll want to do some prep work. I like to start by weighing up all of my ingredients, lining my muffin pan with tulip cases and getting any equipment I may need such as a stand mixer and paddle attachment. Don’t forget to preheat your oven to 180˚c/350˚f.

To get started on the recipe, you’ll want to make the cupcakes. For this recipe, I used the all in one method, which works really well for cupcakes as its quick, easy and faff free.

Simply take all of your ingredients and place them into the mixing bowl – mix together on a low speed to start, working your way up to a medium-high speed. You may find the mixture isn’t smooth and glossy – to help this, simply add a tablespoon of milk at a time, until you have ted desired consistency.

Give the bowl a really good scraping down, just to incorporate any bits that may not have been fully worked in.

Divide the cake mixture between the muffin cases, filling them around 2/3 or 3/4 of the way full and then placing into your preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes (or until a tester comes out clean).

While the cupcakes are baking, you can make your buttercream – which is my French meringue buttercream. The only additional steps I have that aren’t on the main recipe are adding the melted chocolate, cocoa powder and vanilla once the buttercream has been made. You treat it the same way as any other buttercream, giving the bowl a good scraping down and chilling or using straight away. It’s a very stable buttercream to use immediately, not like cream cheese icing which isn’t stable at all.

Once you have the cupcakes and buttercream made, you can finish the cupcakes up.

Simply pipe the buttercream on top of each of the cupcakes, with as much or as little buttercream as you’d like. I went with a plain round tip, but you can use whichever nozzle you’d like.

I had some ganache left over from another recipe (which you’ll see very soon, surprise surprise, its something Easter themed), so top each of the cupcakes with some of the ganache again you can use as much or as little as you’d like. I also had some Easter sprinkles in the cupboard, so dashed some of those over to add a little extra Easter flair.

Then top each of the cupcakes with a mini chocolate rabbit and enjoy.

A very simple and straight forward recipe but one that will go down very well when shared, trust me.

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