Chocolate Crinkles Recipe

Sometimes, the yummiest treats are actually the easiest to make, and luckily for chocolate-loving baking enthusiasts (like me!), chocolate crinkles is one of those. 

When I found this recipe, I almost couldn’t believe it was really that simple. I mean, really? I grew up loving chocolate crinkles. As in seriously LOVED them as a kid, that I’d spend a little bit more of my student allowance just so I could have those special crinkles for recess every once in a while.  

Had I known about this recipe before, I would never have shelled out money for store-bought crinkles ever again. And I’ll bet you would feel the same way once you discover this unbelievably simple and easy (and did I mention cheap? The most basic ingredients) recipe for chocolate crinkles.

CHOCOLATE CRINKLES

Yield: Makes approximately 50 cookies.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon espresso powder (optional) – you may replace espresso powder with instant coffee powder. But since I’m making crinkles for the little kids at home, I chose to omit coffee from the recipe.  
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar

METHOD

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (though you can do this with a wooden spoon, too) beat together the cocoa powder, white sugar, and vegetable oil until it comes together into a shiny, gritty, black dough of sorts.

2. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing for 30 seconds each. Add the vanilla and beat in thoroughly.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and espresso powder if using. Mix into the chocolate mixture on low speed until just combined. Do not overbeat. 

Cover the dough with plastic wrap and chill the dough for four hours or overnight.

4 Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place the confectioner's sugar in a wide bowl. Using a rounded teaspoon get clumps of the chilled dough and roll them into 1-inch (2.5 cm) sized balls using your hands. Roll the balls in the confectioner's sugar and place on the cookie sheets (you should be able to get 12-16 on each sheet). 

Bake for 10-12 minutes. Allow to cool a minute or two on the sheets before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

As easy as 1,2,3... yummy!

If you like to bake chocolate treats like chocolate crinkles, you might also like to discover this chocolate chip cookie recipe:

or this fudgy cupcake recipe:

Cheers to chocolate!

Tiramisu Cake Recipe

tiramisu cake recipe

If you're a chocolate and coffee lover, you are probably a fan of Tiramisu cake. A marriage of two distinct flavors (coffee+chocolate), laced with a hint of coffee liqueur and filled with creamy Italian mascarpone cheese in between its moist, rich layers-- it's one of Italy's sweetest legacies to the world.  

This recipe from one of my favorite baking gurus, captures the spirit of Tiramisu cake as I know it. You will need at least the entire afternoon to make it  but I tell you-- it would be worth it. 

So put on your apron and prepare for battle. Let's do the Tiramisu!

  

TIRAMISU CAKE

For the cake layers:

• 2 cups (255 grams) cake flour
• 2 teaspoons (10 grams) baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 10 tablespoons (140 grams)) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup (200 grams) sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 1/2 teaspoons (8 ml) pure vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup (175 ml) buttermilk

For the espresso extract:

• 2 tablespoons instant espresso powder (I used strong powdered instant coffee as substitute)
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) boiling water

For the espresso syrup:

• 1/2 cup (120 ml) water
• 1/3 cup (65 grams) sugar
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) amaretto, Kahlua, or brandy (I used Kahlua)

For the filling and frosting:

• 1 8-ounce (225 grams) container mascarpone (mascarpone is hard to find in Manila - so I used a substitute recipe from allrecipes.com instead)
• 1/2 cup (60 grams) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
• 1 1/2 teaspoons (8 ml) pure vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) amaretto, Kahlua, or brandy (I used Kahlua)
• 1 cup (235 ml) cold heavy cream
• 2 1/2 ounces (70 grams) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped, or about 1/2 cup store-bought mini chocolate chips 
• Chocolate-covered espresso beans, for decoration (optional)
• Cocoa powder, for dusting

Directions:

Getting the utensils ready

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 

Butter two 9×2 inch round cake pans, dust the insides with flour, tap out the excess, and line the bottoms of the pans with parchment or wax paper. Put the pans on a baking sheet.

Making the cake

Sift together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until soft and creamy.  (I used a hand mixer. More labor, more love)

Add the sugar and beat for another 3 minutes. 

Add the eggs one by one, and then the yolk, beating for 1 minute after each addition. 

Beat in the vanilla; don’t be concerned if the mixture looks curdled. 

Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, adding the dry ingredients in 3 additions and the milk in 2 (begin and end with the dry ingredients); scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed and mix only until the ingredients disappear into the batter. 

Divide the batter evenly between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula.

Bake for 28 to 30 minutes, rotating the pans at the midway point. 

When fully baked, the cakes will be golden and springy to the touch and a thin knife inserted into the centers will come out clean. 

Transfer the cakes to a rack and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes, unmold them, and peel off the paper liners. Invert and cool to room temperature right-side up.

To make the extract

Stir the espresso powder and boiling water together in a small cup until blended. Set aside.

To make the syrup

Stir the water and sugar together in a small saucepan and bring just to a boil. 

Pour the syrup into a small heatproof bowl and stir in 1 tablespoon of the espresso extract and the liqueur or brandy; set aside.

To make the filling and frosting

Put the mascarpone, sugar, vanilla, and liqueur in a large bowl and whisk just until blended and smooth.

Working with the stand mixer with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer, whip the heavy cream until it holds firm peaks. Switch to a rubber spatula and stir about one quarter of the whipped cream into the mascarpone. Fold in the rest of the whipped cream with a light touch.

To assemble the cake

If the tops of the cake layers have crowned, use a long serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion to even them. Place one layer right-side up on a cardboard round or a cake plate protected with strips of wax or parchment paper. 

Using a pastry brush or a small spoon, soak the layer with about one third of the espresso syrup. Smooth some of the mascarpone cream over the layer – user about 1 1/4 cups – and gently press the chopped chocolate into the filling. 

Put the second cake layer on the counter and soak the top of it with half the remaining espresso syrup, then turn the layer over and position it, soaked side down, over the filling. Soak the top of the cake with the remaining syrup.

For the frosting, whisk 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of the remaining espresso extract into the remaining mascarpone filling. Taste the frosting as you go to decide how much extract you want to add. If the frosting looks as if it might be a little too soft to spread over the cake, press a piece of plastic wrap against its surface and refrigerate it for 15 minutes or so. Refrigerate the cake too.

With a long metal icing spatula, smooth the frosting around the sides of the cake and over the top. If you want to decorate the cake with chocolate-covered espresso beans, press them into the filling, making concentric circles of beans or just putting some beans in the center of the cake.

Refrigerate the cake for at least 3 hours (or for up to 1 day) before serving – the elements need time to meld.

Just before serving, dust the top of the cake with cocoa. Decorate as you wish with thinly-chopped chocolate shavings, chocolate chips, and/or frosting. 

I used Lady Finger biscuits (or "Broas", as we call it here in the Philippines) to decorate the edges of my Tiramisu cake. Then for the centerpiece, I frosted a heap of icing (using a giant frosting tip) at the center of the cake and planted a pile of chocolate shavings (thinly-chopped) on top.

     

  

Starbucks Oat Fudge Bars Recipe (A Tasteful Copycat!)

Got this recipe from the baking grapevine, but made a few tweaks to suit my taste and certain limitations. Instead of semi-sweet chocolate chips, I used bittersweet chocolate shavings. As a result, the chocolate tastes much richer and more pronounced. Less milk, more chocolate.

Since I couldn’t find any “real” vanilla anywhere near me (and also because real vanilla beans are a bit pricey in these parts), I settled with vanilla extract (available in grocery stores everywhere. probably not as good as the real thing, but they taste like vanilla and that’s the next best thing). 

If you don’t have quick-cooking oats, whole rolled oats will do. I’ve tried using them once, a bit too chewy for my taste, but take very little away this recipe’s best qualities.

Chocolate+oats = heavenly combination.  <3

If Starbucks can make ‘em, so can we! Let’s do this!

STARBUCKS OAT FUDGE BARS (COPYCAT RECIPE)  

INGREDIENTS

- 1 cup (8 oz) butter (preferably PURE BUTTER– read the labels on your dairy carefully. compared to margarine or butter compound, pure butter produces yummier baked goodies in general)

- 2 cups (16 oz) packed brown sugar

- 2 large eggs

- 2 tsp real vanilla (or vanilla extract)

- 3 cups (24 oz) all-purpose flour

- 1 tsp baking soda

- 3 cups (24 oz) quick-cooking oats

- 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk

- 2 cups (12 oz) semi-sweet chocolate chips (I tried using bittersweet chocolate bar. Tastes better than the semi-sweet chocolate!)

HOW TO DO IT:

1. Set aside 2 TBSPS of the butter. Beat remaining butter with a mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add brown sugar- beat until well mixed. Beat in eggs and vanilla.

2. In another large bowl stir together flour, baking soda, and oats.

3. Gradually stir dry mixture into beaten mixture. Set aside

3. In a medium saucepan, combine the reserved 2 TBSPS butter, sweetened condensed milk, and chocolate.  Cook over low heat until chocolate melts, stir occasionally. (To keep the chocolate from burning – which can happen if it’s over direct heat—I placed the saucepan over a pan of water) Remove from heat.

4. Press two thirds of oat mixture into the bottom of an ungreased 15x10x1-inch baking pan.

5. Spead chocolate mixture over the oat mixture. Using your fingers, dot remaining oat mixture over the chocolate

6. Preheat oven to 350 deg F / 175 deg C. Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until top is lightly browned (chocolate mixture will still look moist). Cool on a wire rack. Cut into 2×2 inch bars.