now that's a lot of macarons!

as mentioned in a previous post, yes, i did make 120 macarons (40 of each: coffee nutella, raspberry and chocolate ganache -- that's the one with the gold sparkly macaron shells) for a wedding a few weeks back. here are the photos of them and oh, they look scrumptious. i haven't baked any macarons since and now looking at them, it makes me want to bake some. hmmmm... one day soon, i'm sure. maybe i'll experiment with some holiday christmas-y flavor or something. you can't go wrong with a peppermint candy and eggnog or i don't know, something with marshmallow and hot cocoa. we'll see what i come up with the next time i bake these babies again. :)

alright, enjoy the photos! of course, if you'd like to make some macarons yourself, i do apologize that i don't have my recipe up yet. but when i do, i will certainly share it on here. in the meantime, you can browse through these previous posts and get david lebovitz's recipe from one of these posts.

let the holiday baking begin!

this apple crisp/crumble is really that good! half of it disappeared within less than 5 minutes of serving.

oh, we absolutely love the holiday season. today was my first official holiday baking kickoff. that's because this morning i made this delicious and yummy looking apple crisp or as some people may call it, apple crumble. i don't have any pretty pictures to show apart from the instagram photo i took this morning (above). but i have to say, holiday baking is so much fun. with thanksgiving just days away, it's really just that exciting. i'm already planning out different recipes in my head, and which ones i want to make this year for thanksgiving. then we've got christmas and i don't know what to do! i mean, i know... but there's so many goodies i can't decide which ones to make. hah! i'm sure come december or at the end of the month anyway i'd already have an idea of what's in store for december. oh, how exciting!

below's the recipe for the apple crisp/crumble should you be interested in making it yourself. this is my favorite go-to apple crisp recipe. we make it every year around this time of year. occasionally we'll have it as dessert for those "english" dinner nights where we have turkey shepherd's pie with popovers, gravy and veggies. mmmm... so good with a drizzle of evaporated milk over this warm and yummy crisp. delish! writing about it makes me want to make another one. :)


apple crisp

ingredients:
4 or 5 medium baking apples (such as granny smith, golden delicious or gala)
1/3 butter, melted
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup quick cooking oats
optional: 1/2 tsp nutmeg, 1/2 tsp cinnamon (i say optional because i don't always put these in)

directions:
preheat oven to 375° F.

peel and slice the apples. then place them in a baking dish (i used an 8x8 glass dish); making sure they cover the entire dish. in a mixing bowl, mix all the other ingredients together (yes, the melted butter, brown sugar, flour and quick cooking oats). if you're using the nutmeg and cinnamon, add those in as well. mix everything until they start to resemble crumb bits. then scatter the topping evenly on top of the apple slices. make sure it covers all the apples as you'll want to have that sweet yummy crumble in every bit! bake in the oven for 30 minutes. serve warm with ice cream or with cold evaporated milk. actually, you can even drizzle warm caramel on top too if you like. delish! enjoy. :)

mini chocolate cupcakes with chocolate ganache

a couple of weeks ago i had the honor and pleasure of baking 100 mini cupcakes (50 chocolate & 50 red velvets) and 120 macarons (these photos to come later in another post when i have time) for one of my coworker's friend's wedding reception. the friend wanted to have a dessert table and have these goodies there. so with that said, i got baking a couple of days leading up to the big day. of course, not these cupcakes. these babies were made the night before/morning of the reception. i have to say they turned out beautifully and tasted yum!

below's the recipe should you be interested in making some yourself. i absolutely love this recipe. it has been my go-to chocolate cupcake recipe ever since i discovered it within the last year. it's also an egg-free recipe so it's perfect for anyone who's got an egg allergy. definitely cannot beat that. enjoy! oh, and if you do make some, please feel free to share your thoughts on it and how they turn out! ;)


now, that's A LOT of chocolate cupcakes eh? and did i mention, they're eggless?! yup, so eat up! :)


a closer shot of these yummy one bite (or two!) cupcakes


i absolutely love this cake recipe. they turn out perfect every time and the chocolate ganache is just delish, especially for chocolate lovers.

mini chocolate cupcakes with chocolate ganache
cake recipe from here and ganache recipe from sweet savory life

chocolate cupcakes:
1-1/2 cups flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup oil
1 cup water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp vinegar

chocolate ganache:
12 oz chocolate, chopped into small pieces
1 cup heavy cream
directions:
for the cake: mix all ingredients together until moist and well blended. put in mini cupcake cups and bake for 17-18 minutes at 350 degrees F.

for the ganache: place chocolate pieces in a large bowl. heat heavy cream on medium high until it comes to a boil. remove from heat and immediately pour cream over chocolate and stir until completely mixed and glossy. allow ganache to completely cool and set up. when you are able to spoon the ganache and it can hold its texture, it is ready for piping. pipe/frost and enjoy!

chocolate cake recipe makes 50 mini cupcakes (or 16 regular ones). ganache recipe makes 1-1/2 cups.