Chocolate Mint Cupcakes

Chocolate and mint is a classic combination and always popular in cake form.  It's also a delicious combination in a creamy dessert pot.  I was sent some of these After Eight dessert pots to review, little pots with a layer of chocolate mousse and a layer of creamy mint fondant and they taste just like your favourite After Eight, after dinner mints. 


The pots are not too big and not too sweet either, in fact they are only125 calories per 70g pot. The After Eight Dessert Pots are available from Asda, Sainsbury's, Tesco and Morrisons for RRP £1.19 for two pack and RRP £1.98 for a four pack.


I also received a tub of Food Thoughts Cocoa.  Food Thoughts Cocoa has a lovely rich, smooth taste and is perfect for baking.

Chocolate Mint (After Eight) Cupcakes
Makes 12 cakes

For the cakes

25g cocoa powder
2tbsp hot water100g soft margarine
100g caster sugar
75g self-raising flour
2 eggs
1 level tsp baking powder
1 pot After Eight Dessert

For the filling
1/2 pot After Eight Dessert

For the butter cream
40g soft butter
3 tbsp cocoa powder, sieved
3 tbsp hot water
225g icing sugar
1/2 pot  After Eight Dessert


To make the cakes
1. Heat the oven to 350F, 180C, Gas 4.  Place your cupcake cases in a muffin tin.
2. Mix the cocoa powder with the hot water to form a paste. Set aside to cool.
3. Once cool add all the other cake ingredients except the After Eight Dessert to the bowl and mix with an electric mixer or a wooden spoon until combined.
4. Fold in the pot of After Eight Dessert.
5. Fill the muffin cases 2/3 full and bake for about 15 minutes until risen and will spring back when gently pressed with your finger.
6.  Leave to cool on a rack.

To fill
1. When the cakes are cold, cut a small plug out of the centre of each bun, don't go right to the bottom of the cake or the filling will run through.  Place the plugs to one side.
2. Fill the holes in the cakes with a teaspoon of After Eight Dessert leaving about 1cm from the top of the cake
3. Cut your 'plugs' of cake into 1cm sections and place on top of the dessert.

For the icing
1. Place the cocoa in a bowl with the hot water, as before, and make a paste, leave to cool.
2. Beat together the butter and the cocoa powder paste.
3. Sieve in the icing sugar and the remaining After Eight Dessert.
4. Fill the icing into a piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle and pipe from the outside to the inside to create a soft swirl.

Chill in the fridge and serve cold for an extra icy mint flavour.

Labels: After Eight Mints, chocolate, Chocolate Mint Cupcakes, cocoa powder, cupcake, dessert, Food Thoughts Cocoa

posted by Janice @ 19:26 9 Comments

Chocolate and Pistaschio Sourdough Cake

I was first given a starter for a 'Friendship Cake' by a friend when my eldest son was at playgroup.  That wasn't yesterday as he is now a father himself!  I'm not sure if this type of sourdough cake is around all the time or if it just pops up every now and again.   I was given some in the autumn and then again just before Christmas, although now it is known as 'Herman the German' .  It also has many websites dedicated to it and now there are variations on the finished recipe, something I had not really considered before. This website even tells you how to start your own and I learned that you can freeze the batter which is great when you run out of friends who like to bake!

So there I am, with a Herman the German sourdough mix ready to be made into cake, I also have a couple of overripe bananas and some lovely samples of Sugar and Crumbs flavoured cocoa powder.  Sugar and Crumbs supply high quality products and are shortly to launch a range of different flavoured cocoa powders.

The Sugar and Crumbs range of cocoa powders will include Mint Moments, Natural Orange, Chocolate Chilli,  Morello Cherry and Pistachio, the flavourings added to the cocoa powder are all natural. I chose to use the Pistachio flavour and add some pistachio nuts to the 'Chocolate Banana' Herman recipe. 

I did use both bananas, even though it specifies only one and I replaced a third of the chopped chocolate with pistachio nuts, I also sprinkled pistachios on the top of the cake.  I baked it in a roasting tin as I find it bakes through well this way and is easy to cut into pieces.

The Pistachio cocoa powder has a very subtle, almost almondy flavour which didn't overpower the cocoa.  We ate some of the cake as dessert with some left over brandy sauce, that was a winning combination if ever I tasted one.  There are lots of new and exciting products being developed at Sugar and Crumbs and I'll keep you updated on any that come my way for testing!

Sugar and Crumbs supplied me with flavoured cocoa powder samples for trial. All opinions are my own.

Labels: banana, chocolate, cocoa powder, Friendship cake, Herman the German, pistachio nuts, Sugar and Crumbs

posted by Janice @ 19:57 6 Comments