Valrhona Fudge Cakes

Finally got to blog about these at All My Sugar :) Click on the link for the recipe!

Happy Valentine's Day!

This sweet vanilla cupcake topped with a rich, creamy swirl of Valrhona chocolate butter frosting will make your heart swoon and make you fall in love with life itself!

For this, I referenced the recipe in my "Cupcakes a la NYC" post (also at Allmysugar.com). They're inspired by Magnolia Bakery's vanilla-chocolate cupcakes, or even Eleni's—both in New York.

Because I forgot to get some at the grocery earlier, I substituted the melted unsweetened chocolate originally called for with the Valrhona cocoa powder I already had in the pantry. Unfortunately, I didn't measure it out and just kept adding cocoa by the spoonfuls to the frosting, until it tasted just about right. I'd say about five tablespoons, but let your tastebuds be the judge :)

Have a sweet Valentine's Day! With love from NYC :)

Malt Ball Overload

At Dylan's Candy Bar :) 

Mariel Jimenez | 30-day Blog Challenge 2013 | Day 29

Dip, Stir, Enjoy!

Le Pain Quotidien Bâtonnets Chocolatés au Chocolat Noir Belge
(Hot Chocolate Sticks with Belgian Dark Chocolate)

Dip in hot milk...

Stir... and enjoy!

Mariel Jimenez | 30-day Blog Challenge 2013 | Day 21

Le Pain Quotidien Bâtonnets Chocolatés au Chocolat Noir Belge

Organic, delectable, and plain awesome. Le Pain Quotidien Bâtonnets Chocolatés au Chocolat Noir Belge (Hot Chocolate Sticks with Belgian Dark Chocolate)

Mariel Jimenez | 30-day Blog Challenge 2013 | Day 21

CCKT One-Minute Chocolate Cake, Revisited

Yes, you can make a messy, gooey, single-(or double)serve chocolate cake in your microwave!

Back in August, I blogged about vegan dessert blogger Chocolate Covered Katie’s One Minute Chocolate Cake recipe, over at my food blog, All My Sugar. It’s unbelievably easy and you actually make it in a microwave oven—a-mazing!

I think Katie has a note about not reposting her recipes verbatim, so please click on the link above if you’re interested in the full recipe.

My modifications:

• regular 2% milk instead of almond milk

• 2 tbsp spelt flour and 1 tbsp of all-purpose flour (instead of spelt all the way)

• melted butter instead of vegetable oil

• added a splash of coffee to the batter

For the frosting, I poured a handful of chocolate chips into a small microwavable glass bowl, added a splash of milk, and microwaved it for a minute. This served as my instant-ganache frosting. Again, super-duper easy!

Oh, and I doubled the recipe to make two little cakes in two little ramekins. :)

Mariel Jimenez | 30-day Blog Challenge 2013 | Day 16

80’s Flashback

80’s flashback: Hershey’s Miniatures, Mr. Goodbar and Special Dark :) 

Mariel Jimenez | 30-day Blog Challenge 2013 | Day 14

Sprinkles of Fun

Now one of my favorite NYC stopovers!
Sprinkles Cupcakes, 780 Lexington Ave. New York, NY 10065

Speaking of happy, vibrant, and colorful things, on a recent trip to California, my sister-in-law got me into Sprinkles Cupcakes. Here's what the brand says about their delectable concoctions:

"Since we opened the world's first cupcake bakery in Beverly Hills, our freshly baked treats have inspired long lines of devoted Hollywood stars and serious epicureans alike."

I first bought their red velvet, raspberry, and S'more cupcakes at the Newport Beach branch and then went on to happily devour the delicious little cakes at a nice mini-picnic patch by Laguna Beach, while enjoying the picturesque views with family. What set these cupcakes apart were their moist texture and not-too-cloyingly-sweet frosting. Whereas most cupcakes here in the U.S. are pretty, some are sugar bombs with dry, crumbly interiors. Sprinkles ranks first on my plate in terms of presentation, flavor, and texture. It's also a plus that the shop only makes 12 variants a day and comes up with limited-edition specials, such as this month's vanilla hazelnut chocolate cupcakes.

Back in New York and back at work, I couldn't stop raving about these treats. THEN a coworker mentioned that we do have Sprinkles in town, right by Bloomingdales on 60th St. and Lexington!

So guess who's gone back more than four times to date?:)

Perfect for picnics! Red velvet and S'more cupcakes. 

Cute cupcake "schedule" card!

Keep at room temperature, do not refrigerate, eat within two days.
(For more info, visit http://www.sprinkles.com/about-sprinkles-cupcakes/faq/#)

Fashion's Night Out version! 

What's not to love?

Bottom, left: limited edition raspberry cupcake from August—absolutely delicious!

Snap-happy!

I was testing out the Snap Widget plugin the other night and it generated a nice montage of my latest Instagram pics.

And below is the original screenshot (because the above thumbnails will change as I continue to upload photos onto the app):

In The Kitchen

Churning out sweet and savory treats :)

Now that we've settled into our new home, I've had more time to tinker about in the kitchen. So far, I've made:

Banana Walnut Muffins…

Buttermilk Biscuits…

 …and Hazelnut Brownies!

Read about the biscuits at All My Sugar, and tune in for the rest of the recipes—will blog about them soon!

Happy Thanksgiving

My kind of turkey.

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving holiday weekend! I had my fair share of turkey in the form of this decadent tablepiece at a family dinner. Given that my modified pesco-vegetarian diet leaves little room for poultry other than chicken, imagine my delight upon discovering that the hosts of a scrumptious, sweet, and savory meal placed shiny dark chocolate figurines next to beautiful flowers. Before dessert was served—a fantabulous spread of fruit, figs, cake, pie, and cupcakes—one of the guests wondered out loud if the little chocolate turkeys were to be eaten. Then, she gamely broke off a piece and the rest of us left at the table enjoyed slivers of its rich, bittersweet "meat."

I now also happen to own one whole piece. The host's mother must have found it amusing/odd that my husband and I kept snapping pics of the chocolate charmers, that after dinner, she told me she would wrap one up for me to take home. Yay! Happy Thanksgiving, indeed :)

Are we there yet?

DAY 27

of the 30-Day Blog Challenge, 2011

I'm four posts away from finishing this year's 30-Day Blog Challenge, and it has been a real challenge so far coming up with a single post everyday, what with work, errands, yoga classes, and other things that occupy my time. But, I know completing it is a reward in itself.

I got to thinking about patience, persistence, and waiting:

1) Persistence pays off.

At mass today, the priest said, "God answers the prayers of the persistent." And, he also said this prayer of thanksgiving, "We thank You for all that we already have, and we only ask for more because of our reliance in You." I like the above quotes because, while I know that God already knows exactly what I need and want (chocolate), he also is a great listener. I akin it to a parent lovingly listening to a child narrating a Christmas wish list; a child fixating on a particular toy which, one morning, magically sits under the tree, topped with a gorgeous bow. It's a delightful moment for both giver and receiver. So, when you want something, ask, ask, ask! And then be grateful.


2) Patience is a virtue.

I think about my husband when discussing patience and (high) EQ—qualities that come naturally to him. You'll never see him harrowed by long airport lines or waiting in general (except probably at restaurants). He has the tenacity that comes from diligence, that's why he gets the promotion and lands the best deal when shopping. As for me, I'm pretty good at waiting and long lines too—having been an only child for the most part, boredom has rarely ever been an issue. Compared to my husband though, I am the impatient one. So it's good that we're together.

That said, I also believe that a little impatience thrown into the mix from time to time can be helpful, especially if it helps propel you forward. A nudge here and there, and you can go back to planting seeds and being patient.

3) Good things come to those who wait.

I subscribe to this quote as well but I can't help but think about Ann Boleyn, eep! Fine, not everybody suffers the fate of the beheaded queen—she did get the king after seven years of waiting before he decided to do away with her. Still, going back to #1, it's good to be persistent…and to try to find meaning in waiting.

Red Velvet Dreams

DAY 26

of the 30-Day Blog Challenge, 2011

Spending time with family so here's a quick post, folks.

Perhaps it's from my current no-chocolate resolution, or a simple random dessert craving, but before waking up this morning, I dreamt that I was eating a big red velvet cupcake from Crumbs Bakeshop.

It's rather large. You'll have enough leftovers for later :)

If you're ever in New York, I suggest making a quick stop at the shop. There's one right outside Grand Central. They also sell red velvet whoopie pies, cookies and cream cupcakes, and the Colossal Crumb—a larger-than-life version of their signature sweet treat.

I don't know how long I'll be able to not eat cake, cookies, and all that fun stuff!

Street Shopping

DAY 20

of the 30-Day Blog Challenge, 2011

Stop, look, and shop.

Among my favorite things about New York City are the street markets that prop up on weekends in certain parts of town. It's a joy to alight from the subway stop and be greeted by an unexpected road bazaar that stretches out over blocks and blocks of concrete.

More than the merchandise, it's the food that beckons: warm chicken and lamb gyros, freshly-squeezed lemonade, juicy slices of watermelon, barbecued corn, and more.

If it's the shopping you're after, you'll find all sorts of trinkets and colorful items—from pashmina scarves, mobile accessories, jewelry, nail polish, fragrance, and silk socks; to home accoutrements including large area rugs and decorative items.

Going back to the food, I recommend the following street market game plan if you're looking to check out any of the upcoming ones around town:

First, have at least $20 to $40 cash on hand. I believe some of the merchants take credit cards (like the carpet dealers) but for everything else, you'll need cash.

Second, start walking with an empty stomach, and head to the first gyro or falafel stand you spot; there are several of them. Sling your camera on your wrist or neck, and hook your bag on your shoulder. You'll need both hands if you're ordering the larger-than-life pita concoction. Don't worry, you can eat it with a fork, hence, "I have two hands."

Sweet street food.

Third, when the gyro whittles down to a much more manageable size that it looks like a sandwich and can be eaten as such, you can ditch the fork and walk towards a lemonade stand. Fish out a dollar and resist the urge to order the bubble tea (unfortunately, the street market version isn't very good, plus, it's ridiculously expensive). Dessert can be the uniformly cut hunks of watermelon, or, if you walk a few steps down, a banana nutella crepe. Yum.

If, at this point, you need to go to the bathroom, you'll most likely be in front of a Starbucks café or a Marriott Hotel. After using the facilities and freshening up, you can commence on shopping for things that you don't exactly need but are oh so cute and/or covetable. In my case, I spotted the purple Justin Bieber version of Beats by Dr. Dre Solo headphones. Adorable ube shade at $160—about 30% off the regular retail price. However, I ended up going to Best Buy and spending almost an hour perusing on-ear units, ultimately emerging with new Klipsch noise-isolating headphones. And that's for another post.

Corn sweet corn. A larger-than-life gyro.

Chocolate Secret

DAY 16

of the 30-Day Blog Challenge, 2011

Three Cs of happiness: chocolate, cake, and cookies.
The TKO giant cream-filled cookie from Bouchon Bakery.

 Here's something I've only told my husband this morning, a secret that I've kept for almost four months now: I haven't had chocolate since April 27 of this year. That's right, not a single piece, sliver, or wedge of heavenly cocoa.

I also haven't had a cookie or any cake topped with frosting since that day, for that matter.

Now, this will come as a surprise to those who know me well, because I've had chocolate almost everyday for as long as I can remember. The only other times I'd consciously skipped it for more than one day were 1) my failed attempts at Atkins and South Beach back in 2004 (at some point, I found the ABS Diet that lets one have dark chocolate and ice cream and I've been on it ever since) and 2) certain Fridays of Lent wherein, being sort of vegetarian, I'd chosen to abstain from chocolate instead of meat. The funny thing about the latter is that on those days, I would wait up until midnight so I could have dessert and by then it would be Saturday. Totally defeats the noble and spiritual purpose, I know.

This is how an Oreo cookie would look like if it had gone to Paris.

Holding a "Dirty" cupcake from
Sweet Revenge.

This chocolate hiatus started as a no-dessert experiment which, obviously poses a serious challenge for someone like me who has a sweet tooth. The compromise was to only have sweet things that grew from the earth, or at least weren't placed in a hearth, cooled, and topped with dollops of creamed butter and sugar. Suffice it to say, I've had countless yogurt parfaits and yogurt everything from the time I decided to give up chocolate. I also have a keener appreciation these days for coffee gelato and green tea ice cream.

Yes, there are many ways around this no-chocolate thing that I'm doing. Why did I even start it, you may ask. For several reasons, the first being, it occurred to me one day that what could be a quaint love affair with sugar and the cacao bean may possibly be a full-blown addiction. I do get a delirious high whenever I ingest anything tinged with chocolate. I was listening to an audiobook by inspirational author, Dr. Wayne Dyer, and what he said about overcoming addiction called out to me. I don't remember what he said verbatim, but it has something to do with one's frame of mind and a paradigm shift.

Second, well, I'm sure many of you can relate to praying for something, fervently asking God's help, and, as a bargaining chip, you offer to hold your end of the deal by doing something challenging, or even noble. And, yes, I'm still keeping parts of that a secret.

Third, it boils down to health and wellness. Just like initially cutting out red meat as a novelty, it eventually became a convenient wellness approach to adopt. Don't get me wrong, it will be extremely difficult to turn down a slice of Ms. Polly's chocolate cake (four of which were among our seven cakes at the wedding!). And, if my husband hands over a slice, for sure I will indulge.

Cupcakes a la NYC

Easy to make, easy to eat!

Once you get past the novelty and nostalgia of eating cupcakes from the famous Magnolia Bakery in the West Village (or in any of the branches that have cropped up all over town, for that matter), your taste buds would promptly determine how sickeningly sweet the little cakes are.

That said, the cloying qualities of said sugar bombs have not stopped me from reaching for one every now and then. It's the sweet equivalent of craving KFC—unadulterated and greasy—when nothing else would hit the spot.

I recently stumbled upon a Magnolia-esque bakeshop at the Chelsea Market called Eleni's, where I got to order a vanilla cupcake covered in chocolate buttercream frosting. Their version is sweet enough (not too much), creamy, and perfectly portioned for the walk from the store to the subway. It was definitely a delicious moment...so much so that I continued to fixate on the choco-vanilla combo for two days, prompting me to take the cupcake plunge: I had to make my own.

Mmm...

If you Google "vanilla cupcakes with chocolate frosting" you will come across similar versions of the recipe I've listed here. There are two major-nice things to note about churning your own sweet treats. One, you know exactly what goes in and you can use premium ingredients (you know how I feel about vegetable shortening, blech!). Two, it's way way cheaper!

Most recipes call for either cake flour or self-rising flour—both of which are easy to substitute with all-purpose flour. For every cup of cake flour you need, combine two tablespoons of cornstarch and AP flour in one measuring cup. To make your own self-rising flour, add 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt to one cup of AP flour. The recipe below is a modified version featuring the latter.

More important than the flour you use is actually the method with which you combine the ingredients. As in the case of making any type of fluffy cake, be careful to not overmix the batter. I paraphrase Good Eats host Alton Brown in saying that overbeating the batter produces gluten—the stretchy protein strands that render your finished product chewy  and "not good eats."

Here's an extra-pretty batch!

Cupcakes a la NYC
(a.k.a. Vanilla Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting)

You'll need:

1/2 cup (one stick) butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

(You may refer to the original recipe using cake flour here.)

Napa Valley

Fifth post of the Travel Series.

Scrambled eggs, fingerling potatoes, and salsa served with a fresh white corn tortilla.

In Napa Valley, be prepared to wine and dine to your heart's content. Rolling fields, A-list restaurants, and bottles and bottles of wine greet visitors in this sunny locale north of San Francisco. Most tourists and California residents stop by Sonoma County before heading for the wineries in Napa County. As an East Coast resident, I am pretty much satisfied seeing clear blue skies and staying somewhere warm (although it was a little bit nippy when we were in CA); after all, good food and great restos are abound in New York City. So when my sister-in-law and her husband—both foodies/food enthusiasts—took my husband and myself to Napa, I was pretty much blown away by the amazing and delicious culinary fare.

Tex-mex seems to be a staple in the area, but before you say "greasy," note that chefs and restaurant owners seem to take the cuisine very seriously, as in the case of Catherine Bergen, who, last year, opened C Casa, "an innovative taqueria," in the Oxbow Public Market. We had breakfast there, and, while in the past, I have shied away from any Huevos Rancheros-type meal in the morning (too early for something savory), I tried one of the Egg Plates on the menu (above photo). The serving was small yet tasty and surprisingly substantial. My favorite part was the fresh white corn tortilla that they make right there at the stall. It's nothing like I've ever tasted before. You really can't beat homemade/handmade.

Sweet—my husband and the maple walnut ice cream he's holding :)

Also at the Oxbow market was Three Twins Organic Ice Cream Factory, where, hands down, I've had the best ice cream in my life—not kidding. The closest to the experience would probably if I churned my own ice cream at home.

And, yes, in Napa it's all about the cheese...

And, of course, the wine. Here I am holding a bottle of Vintage Port (which pairs well with chocolate, ahem).

Thinly-cut onion strings.

Last but not the least (and still, barely skimming the restaurant scene in Napa), is Mustard's Grill, supposedly where one could have the best porkchops in town or ever. My husband can probably attest to this, as I am some sort of pesco-vegetarian so I can only infer. But, here's a pic:

Famous Mongolian Pork Chop with sweet and sour red cabbage,
mashed potatoes (which were excellent!), and housemade mustard.

Like I said, in Napa Valley, the wining and dining never stops :) Cheers!

READ the Travel Series starting with...
1. DENVER
2. SILVERTHORNE & BRECKENRIDGE
3. SAN FRANCISCO
4. SONOMA COUNTY
5. NAPA VALLEY
6. CHICAGO
7. NEW YORK

Sonoma County

Fourth post of the Travel Series

Clear, sunny skies...welcome to California!

Through the looking glass...

Now, if you love food as much as I do, you can't go to San Francisco without spending a day (or two) in Sonoma County and Napa Valley.

I'll be talking about Napa in the next post, but for now, let's focus on sunny Sonoma, located just about 45 minutes north of Sanfo. Our first stop en route was CornerStone, "an eclectic collection of shops, wineries, and a gourmet cafe set amidst nine acres of garden installations created by the world's leading landscape architects," according to the website.

I've had plenty of salads before, but the one I had at the CornerStone gourmet cafe was different: fresh, crisp...it must be the whole "California" thing.

My husband and sister-in-law both ordered sandwiches that came with green olives.
Neither wanted them so they went to yours truly.

A few minutes' drive from CornerStone, is Sonoma Plaza—a small town square of sorts, where one could find several quaint shops, restaurants—including this smoky outdoor grill (you won't believe how good it smells when you walk past it!)—historic sites, and more.

And, of course, plenty of wine, cheese, and chocolate. Many of which, you could sample for free. Yum!

There is no shame in good chocolate.

READ the Travel Series starting with...
1. DENVER
2. SILVERTHORNE & BRECKENRIDGE
3. SAN FRANCISCO
4. SONOMA COUNTY
5. NAPA VALLEY
6. CHICAGO
7. NEW YORK