Devil's Grown-Up Food Cake

On for yet another desert, now. To be fair, it's by learning how to bake that I got interested in cooking, so I figure there's no harm in filling your eyes with delicious sweets! I first learned about this recipe when a high school friend volunteered to make a cake for 10 people for an occasion I can't remember right now. I tasted it and loved the texture right away, but I didn't really like how bland it tasted. I've personalized her recipe over the years, and finally got to this:

Ingredients

1 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 tespoon allspice
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup salted butter at room temperature
2 large eggs
1/2 cup coffee
1/2 cup Bailey's
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Note: Traditionally, a devil's food cake requires baking soda instead of baking powder. However, my mother never baked with baking soda because it made my father sick, so I never even bothered to change that habbit. Also, you can replace the coffee and Bailey's with one cup of milk and make it children-friendly.

Step By Step

Preheat the oven at 350 degrees.

Sift the cocoa powder, allspice, flour and baking powder together.

Beat the vanilla, sugar and butter until light and creamy.

Separate the whites from the yolks, set the whites aside and incorporate the yolks to the butter-sugar mix.

Add the coffee, half the flour, the Bailey's, then the other half of the flour and finally the milk to the mix.

Beat the whites until stiff and fold into mix.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Decoration

If you are in a hurry, just sprinkle with decorative sugar before popping into the oven. Otherwise, you can frost the cake with your choice of frosting once the cake is cooled.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Cupcakes and Pink Icing

This is definitely a personal fave. I LOVE cupcakes and wish I could constantly be surrounded with these awesome fancy little snacks. Now, to the kitchen:

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup flour
3 tablespoons baking powder
1/4 cup salted butter
1/2 cup sugar
200g chocolate (semi-sweet)
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup milk

Step by Step

Preheat the oven at 350 degrees.

Melt the chocolate and butter on low heat. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder. Then, separate the yolks from the whites. Beat the yolks, vanilla and sugar, and whisk the whites.

Add the chocolate and butter to the yolk-vanilla-sugar. Slowly and alternately add the milk and flour-baking powder. Fold in the whites.

Fill medium cupcakes paper cups, leaving a bit of space in the cup. Bake for 20 minutes.

While your delicious cupcakes are baking, let's get to the frosting:

Beat together 250g confectioner's sugar and 150g unsalted butter at room temperature. Once well combined, add 2 teaspoons of vanilla and 2 teaspoons of hot water. For the pink hue, add 3 drops of red colorant, or more for a stronger colour.

*If you have an electric beater, do yourself a favour and use it. If, like me, you don't, just use your arms, it'll make you stronger.

Let the frosting stand until your cupackes are baked and cooled. Once frosted, you can also sprinkle decorative sugar on your cupcakes for added prettiness. Be creative and enjoy!