Blueberry cream cheese butter cake

Its been ages since I updated the blog, and even longer since I posted a cake recipe. I have half written posts in my drafts and loads of reviews to be done, but somehow my days have become really busy..ever since I started working part time. I love my job and its opened up a completely new world of baking and cooking and such for me. More on that later.

I am not going to ramble today, yes, time constrained, so I'll go straight to the recipe. Like I said before, I hadn't baked a cake in a looong time and so on a day I felt the need to eat something seriously unhealthy, cake was what came to my mind. My usual Google searches led me to this fab recipe, tried by 3 of my fav bloggers and so I knew it was going to be a winner. 

Loads of butter, loads of sugar and loads of cream cheese is what nice things are made of. So by no means think that this is a low calorie cake...which I think is bull shit any way. There is nothing called low calorie cake. If you want to eat cake then go all out and eat the real thing is my motto! Which is also probably why I need to go on a crazy diet :O

I usually don't like to bake with butter, more so because the whole creaming it with sugar etc etc is messy and time consuming, as opposed to oil which is soo cool, you just pour it into the batter (and also I can be a teeny tiny happy its a bit better than butter). But once in a while I don't mind going all out and, although I cringed at the amount of ingredients needed, that's exactly what I did with this cake! The outcome was delicious. I mean really, really delicious. Its so moist, like melt-in-your-mouth moist, and the blueberries break down the sweetness at intervals. It so versatile, you can definitely make this cake plain or add any other flavouring like orange or lemon and it would be great. TRUST ME!

Recipe adapted from here (makes an 8 inch loaf cake + an 8 inch square cake)

Caster sugar- 1 cup

Butter- 250 gms, softened

Vanilla extract- 1 tsp

Eggs- 3, medium at room temperature

Cream cheese- 250 gms

Milk- 1/3rd cup

Self-raising flour- 2 1/4 cups

Blueberries- 150 gms, fresh or frozen (I used fresh)

I didn't have self raising flour so I made my own by sifting together 3 1/2 tsp of baking powder with 2 1/4 cups of plain flour. The ideal measurement is 2 tsp baking powder to 1 cup plain flour.

Pre heat the oven to 160C and line an 8 inch loaf pan and 8 inch square brownie  pan with baking paper

Beat together the sugar butter and vanilla extract in a free standing mixer, using the paddle attachment, till soft and fluffy. You can use your hand beater as well.

Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Change to the whisk attachment and add the cream cheese and milk. Whisk till the mix turns lump free and you get a smooth batter.

Add the flour and whisk just until mixed.

Using a spatula, fold in the blueberries.

Pour the batter into the lined pans till about 1/4th full and bake for about 50 minutes or till a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. My brownie pan took only 40 minutes to bake.

Once done, cool completely on a wire rack and before eating either dust with some icing sugar or have it plain.

Notes: Original recipe called for 1 1/2 cups of sugar. Even for an ardent sugar lover I thought that was a bit too much, so i reduced it to 1 cup. It was pleasantly sweet.

I changed to whisk attachment half way through because i noticed that the cream cheese was still in lumps and not smoothening out with the paddle attachment. The whisk worked like a charm.

The cake keeps well in the refrigerator for about a week. I cling wrapped it properly and refrigerated it. It also freezes well.

Replace the blueberries with any berry of choice.

Read more »

Blueberry-lavender gin and tonic

For the past couple of months a whole bunch of us (Nupur, Suchi, Preeti and I) have been busy planning Bloggers' Buzz- a food blogger meet, and its been pretty overwhelming thinking that the big day is in 2 days time. We have managed to rope in 25 bloggers and food enthusiasts and a good number of generous sponsors for the event. We will just have to wait with fingers crossed that nothing goes wrong on the day and the event is deemed a success.

There is a competition up and running for the event and its being judged by Jeanne of Cooksister, who is a well established blogger and photographer. In between all the BB work and some deadlines on the work front I couldn't whip up anything spectacular or innovative for the event, but the thought of winning a Hotel Chocolat gift hamper made me post something anyway.

I am not a big blueberry fan except if its in a muffin. So I was pleasantly surprised when the combination of lavender and blueberry in this drink made it to my top 5 (yes i have a top 5 in my mind). Lavender is quite over powering in this drink, but its such a nice and fragrant herb that I love using it in cakes, cookies and drinks. Here are two ways you can use up lavender l

Makes 6 servings

Water- 1/4 cup

Sugar- 1/4 cup

Dried lavender- 1/2 tsp

Blueberries- 2 cups

Gin- 1/2 cup

Tonic- 200ml (2 small cans)

Ice cubes- as required

 

Make a sugar syrup by boiling together the water sugar and dried lavender..

Boil, stirring occasionally, till the sugar is completely melted.

Close with a lid and let it steep for about 15 to 20 minutes.

Once the times up transfer the syrup into a glass and cool in the refrigerator till ready to use.

Meanwhile, wash the blueberries and tip into a saucepan with 2 tbsp of the sugar syrup and 2 tbsp of water.

Cook on medium heat till the blueberries break down and gets slightly cooked. It doesn't need to be that pulpy, just break them all down with a wooden spoon.

Cool and strain into a large bowl, diluting it with water if you find the juice is not falling through.

Add the gin and give a good stir. 

Do a taste test and if you need more sugar add the remaining sugar syrup.

Add ice cubes to the glasses and pour in the drink about half full..top with the tonic and enjoy :)

Notes: Add lemonade instead of tonic water for a change

Ignore the gin for an alcohol free version.

Muddle some mint leaves with the blueberries and I'm sure it would be great.

Read more »

Blueberry breakfast muffins

The husband started complaining about how boring his morning breakfast of toast, butter and cold meats were getting too monotonous and I thought I'll whip up some blueberry muffins for him. The muffins came out ok but our gluttonous minds set to work the moment they came out of the oven and so we were left with around 3 by the next morning. Since its just me and Ro doing all the eating, I usually make small quantities of all the cakes and bakes and cookies and such. This was no exception and yes, out of 8 large muffins, we ate around 5 within a time span of about 3 hours and then resisted the urge to have them as dessert after dinner.

So the muffins lasted for exactly one morning and it hasn't made its way through ever since. But please don't judge them by what I just said. It's got nothing to do with taste, just that blueberries went out of season right after this and the husband went back to having toast and cold meats because the muffins still left him hungry!!!!

I have tried making muffins numerous times before and except for the time I tried them with whole wheat, the rest have all been disastrous. I keep wanting them to taste (and look) like the Starbucks ones, but they don't come anywhere close. These, however, were moist, easy to put together and good to look at, and I was sold. If I ever make blueberry muffins again, I shall be sticking to this recipe. Well unless Starbucks actually gives me the recipe for their mother of a muffin :)

Recipe adapted from here (makes 8 of them)

 

Egg- 1 large

Sugar- 1/2 cup

Vegetable oil- 1/4 cup

Vanilla extract- 1/4 tsp

Plain flour- 1 cup

Salt- 1/4 tsp

Baking soda- 1/4 tsp

Plain yogurt- 1/2 cup

Blueberries- 1/2 cup (heaped)

 

Mix together flour, salt and baking soda in a small bowl. Keep aside

In a large mixing bowl, using a wire whisk or a wooden spoon, beat the egg till light and fluffy.

Gradually add in the sugar, while continuously whisking, followed by oil.

Stir in the vanilla extract.

Tip in the dry ingredients alternating the yogurt and mix it all in, without any traces of flour being obvious.

Slowly fold in the blueberries and using a large ice-cream scoop add the batter to a muffin pan, lined with muffin cases/ cups.

Bake in an oven preheated at 200C for about 20 to 22 minutes or till a skewer comes out clean (if you by chance pierce a blueberry, it wont come out clean, so don't take that into consideration)

Transfer the tray on to a wire rack and after about 5 minutes, remove the muffin cups and leave to cool completely.

Stays fine at room temperature for 2 days.

Notes: Original recipe calls for sour cream, but I had only yogurt at hand and used it instead. came out super moist whatsoever.

Read more »