The only 5 simple steps you need to know to make the best Homemade Bagels recipe that is dense, soft and chewy on the inside and crusty on top, right at the comfort of your kitchen in just 1 hour.
This post has got you covered with all the tips, techniques, different variations in a step by step video tutorial format.
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Statutory Warning – This Instant Pot No Knead Bread flavoured with cheese and herbs is gonna make you so addicted that you would end up coming back to it again and again.
Grab a coffee and follow along this dutch oven bread proofed in Instant Pot is the only ultimate guide to bread making you will ever need.
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This Buttercream Flower Cake is an easy floral design cake perfect for any occasion – Wedding, Birthday or Anniversary. Making buttercream flowers is easier than you think.
In this tutorial learn how to make this beautiful Cut-Out Cake decorated with hand-piped buttercream roses that cover the detailed tips and tricks on piping tips, buttercream frosting consistency and the one way to get it right EVERY SINGLE TIME!!!
After going through the tutorial of this floral buttercream cake, I believe that you will become more confident with frosting the cake and trying the Watercolour Buttercream Technique, piping simple buttercream flowers and finally adding the magical touch to make your cake look straight out of the bakery or even better.
Even though I will be discussing a lot of factors in depth in this post, I would still recommend you to go through two of my earlier posts on the Buttercream Series which will help you even more namely:
Now before you even start to make the frosting for making the cake, I would highly recommend you guys to check out my tips for how to make the perfect Buttercream Frosting. In this post, you will find answers to all your questions namely:
The major take-aways from this particular post will include:
Since I have covered the majority of the things in the two mentioned posts, I will not repeat all those points once again or else this post would become too long and it might happen that I might miss writing the other things you need to know or you are so bored by the length of the post that you just GO BACK!!!
So WAIT.. please don’t leave just go through this and I promise that you will find what you came looking for. 😀
Things you will need:
With your frosting ready in the piping bag fitted with the petal nozzle start by squeezing just a bit of it directly on the flower nail. This would act as a glue for the parchment paper to stick on and won’t allow the paper to move while you are piping the buttercream flowers.
Start by piping a dollop of the prepared buttercream frosting in the centre of the nail to create a bud. This would just look like a blob at the centre.
Next, go a 360° round around the blob of frosting closing the inner blob to represent a bud.
The inner-circle should have exactly 3 petals. The technique of making the petal involves creating an arch from left to right overlapping the first arch.
The next circle should have 5 petals. The technique remains the same. And one more thing is that start by creating a smaller arch at the beginning and then increase the size as you finish the petal.
Let the flowers chill in the fridge until set.
Watch it in the video format would be even easier.
For the sake of decorating this Buttercream Flower Cake, I have just made roses of different sizes. The primary colours used in making the roses are pink, peach and yellow.However please note that the video has 3 additional flower-making procedure which would be super helpful too. 😀
As a beginner, it would totally stress you out when you just begin to make your first buttercream flower. Be patient here, with a little practise you will get there. And I promise by the end of making 5 flowers you will gain the speed you need.
But here are certain tips and pointers to keep in mind while making the roses. Not only roses this will work for other flowers too.
Once you pipe the flowers you need just place the parchment paper squares on to the cookie tray. Place the tray in the freezer for 10 mins.
And when they are frozen (becomes super easy to handle), simply place them in an airtight container. You can even stack them one above the other.. Nothing will happen till they are in the freezer.
Once they are out of the freezer, make sure to separate the flowers as they tend to thaw pretty quick and would then stick to each other.
However, if you are planning to use the buttercream flowers on the same day itself then simply chill them in the fridge until set no need to freeze in that case.
You can store the buttercream flowers in the freezer for up to a week. Nothing will happen if you store more than that but I haven’t tried storing beyond that point and so won’t recommend too.
Yes definitely.
That’s the whole point of me writing this section and also mentioning to make this easy Buttercream Flowers right at the start.
Make the buttercream flowers 2 to 3 days prior and store them in the freezer as mentioned above.
For this Buttercream Flower Cake tutorial, I have made use of my go-to simple Vanilla Cake Recipe.
I have used 1.5 times of the recipe and baked it in 3, 6-inch cake tins for the same time interval.
Once cooled trimmed the top off and applied my simple syrup so that the cake remains moist all the time.
Filled with my all-time favourite smooth and not so sweet Vanilla Buttercream Frosting and Tutti Frutti and also frosted the cake with the same frosting just dyed it peach.
To give the watercolour technique simply take the frosting of your choice and colour it as you like. I have used pink and yellow colour.
Using a spatula apply the colours at random places on top of your cake. Once you are happy with the colouring, take a spatula and smoothen it out in one or two go maximum so that the colours remain distinct.
If you would go on smoothening the frosting then the colours would blend with each other and would not remain distinct.
Chill it for 10 to 15 mins makes it so much easier to work with while you reach the decorating part.
Always make the frosting more than what you think would be needed.
Apart from the filling and frosting you also need frosting to make the flowers. So keeping that in mind make sure you always have excess in hand. I hate it when I am just about to finish the cake and realise that there are no more frosting left.
For this particular cake, I used nearly 600 gms of butter and 1500 gms of Icing sugar from start to finish.
Now that you have the required buttercream flowers ready and the cake is also chilled and ready and placed on the cake board of your choice, time to decorate the cake.
Using a sharp knife, (Insider’s Tip: I like to dip my knife in hot water before slicing any cake for clean cuts) cut the cake halfway keeping the end portion still intact. (Refer the video)
With the help of the spatula or a knife move the half slices to the edges of the cake board creating a centre gap.
Using the same frosting, frost the now exposed sides of the cake. This would also act as a medium or glue for our buttercream flowers to stick on.
Using a leaf tip and green coloured frosting make leaves on the centre end of the cake where the cake is still joint to each other.
Now look at your buttercream flower sizes and place them on the cake in the colour pattern you like or according to the space available.
Do not worry about the little gaps that you can see we will fill those up too.
So once you are happy with the placements of flowers, using tip 1M make hydrangea flowers on the gaps that are super evident.
Finally, add some leaves using the leaf tip to cover up any faults or still exposed cake parts.
To add the magical touch, place some butterflies on the cake, add edible gold glitter and sprinkles.
Voila, the most beautiful cake I have made until now. What do you all think?
Besides making the Cut-Out cake you could also have chosen to simply place the flowers on top of the cake to make a wreath design. Buttercream flower wreath cake is quite a popular cake design trend too.
While placing the roses on to the sides of the cake some of them might fall. Do not panic simply press the roses a little harder to the frosting and it will stick. If not add some frosting to the back of the rose and then place it.
I hope you guys found my detailed post on this Buttercream Flower Cake Tutorial helpful and you are now at least a tidbit confident about making a three-layer cake.
If so then definitely do share your thoughts with me on Facebook messenger or Instagram or Twitter. I would love to hear from you guys.
Pin this for later
I will see you soon with yet another recipe
Until then
Hugs
Sushma
I am sorry for making you addicted to bread baking at home, because once you make this soft and chewy Whole Wheat Pita Bread at home then there would be no looking back..
You would totally get addicted to its flavour and would keep coming back for more!!!
In this vegan pita bread post, I will cover details on:
Now I would try to keep this post short and cut it down because all the tips and tricks and the methods that I have discussed in my Pita Bread post applies to this as well so I will try not to repeat the same and try to share few additional information instead.
And hence if you have not already gone through my earlier post I would highly recommend you guys to look into it now or maybe after you read through this recipe. Here is the link to that post.
Pita Bread basically falls into the category of flatbreads from the Meditteranean Cuisine.
The pita bread dough has similar ingredients like other flatbreads such as pizza dough or a naan dough, the little techniques used to make this dough is what gives the Pita Bread that characteristic puff and that pockets is then used to fill hummus, veggie or meat filling, falafel and dipping sauce.
Stay tuned because the 6 steps and tricks mentioned in the post would definitely help you make a Pita Bread on your own.
If Pita bread itself is so amazing then why make it with whole wheat?
To be brutally honest with you, I have made this homemade pita bread just on the request you guys made on the video. I like to enjoy bread or cakes made of Plain Flour or Maida more than ones made using Whole Wheat.
However, I must respect your thoughts and opinion too right.. so if you ask for a whole wheat pita bread recipe I would definitely share it.
Moreover, whole wheat flour is easily digested by our body as compared to plain flour and also it is said that whole wheat flour has more iron and nutrients comparatively. Does that answer your question;Â is pita bread healthy or is whole wheat pita bread healthy?
Well, I for one do not believe that everything made using whole wheat is healthy. Let us not get into that debate as for now, but rather let us enjoy making pita bread at home.
Now that you know what is pita bread, time to look into the Whole Wheat Pita Bread ingredients – which includes the usual flour, yeast, salt, sugar and water.
I have already discussed each of them in detail in my previous post so skipping it now and moving on to the next step. In place of plain flour or maida mentioned in that post we are using whole wheat flour here.
So let us now have a look at:
Like any other yeast-leavened bread, to make a soft Whole Wheat Pita Bread you will have to follow the same steps of bread making – Kneading, First Proofing, Shaping, Second Proofing and Cooking.
So that brings us to our first step.
Did you know each and every bread has an optimum temperature after kneading? And to get that optimum temperature we need to have the liquid required to make the dough at a specific temperature.
Pheww…
And the temperature of water for this Whole Wheat Pita Bread dough has to be around 90-100 degree Fahrenheit.
The second thing to note is that if you are using Active Dry Yeast in place of Instant Yeast then you need to activate it first before adding to your mixture.
To make this dough, we will add all our dry ingredients – flour, salt and sugar in a bowl and give a mix. Dissolve your yeast in the water and add this to the dry flour.
Combine together until all the flour is hydrated.
Dust your worktop with some dry flour. Transfer the dough to your worktop and start kneading.
This is going to be a really sticky mess to begin with but keep on dusting and keep on kneading. After about 10 mins add olive oil and kneed again. It took me around 25 mins and almost 1/2 cup of more wheat flour to get a soft, smooth and tacky dough.
Once again I would refer you guys to check my previous post on Pita Bread as to how to knead the dough right way!!
Grease a bowl with oil. Transfer the dough into it and allow this to proof for 2 hours.
And this is where my new found love – Instant Pot comes in play. Instant Pot Bread is suddenly a rage now and I can totally see why.
So I allowed my bread to proof in Instant Pot for 1 hour. Yes, that is the advantage of using the magic pot it literally cuts down the proofing time by half. Super handy to make a no-knead bread.. no need to wait for 6 to 8 hours for it to proof.
Yea so if you have an Instant Pot then allow it proof in the pot for 1 hour in yogurt setting mode or else proof it for 2 hours.
Next time I am gonna test the batch for 30 mins of proofing in Instant Pot.. Will test it and update the results with you guys 😀
After the first proofing, gently deflate the dough, shape it into a log and divide it into 6 balls. Or you can also weigh them to be accurate. I weighed them this time and each ball was around 75 gms.
Take a ball, tuck the sides to the base and try to give them a round shape and place it on your worktop. Cover it with a tea towel and repeat the step with the remaining 5 balls and place it adjacent to the previous one.
Starting with the first dough that you shaped, flatten it out and using a rolling pin to roll it into a circle with around 6 inch diameter.
Don’t get me wrong again to understand the why and how’s just check that post..
Once you roll the dough out, place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper or worktop dusted with flour. Cover with a tea towel so that it doesn’t dry out.
You need the parchment paper beneath because the dough on resting seems to get wet a bit and when you try to lift it up you might unknowingly cause it to tear and then the pitas won’t puff so it is important to place them on a parchment paper.
So once rolled out, allow the dough to rest a bit – second proofing for 30 mins so that the gluten gets time to relax.
In whichever medium you choose to cook your pitas be it in an oven or a skillet make sure that it is super HOT.
The hot conditions of the oven are needed to quickly create steam which would eventually create the pockets. If the oven temperature is too low, the steam won’t cause the puff, and you’ll end up with thick pita bread.
Preheat the oven to max temperature with the baking stone inside so that the stone is also hot when you place the pitas. Within a matter of 3 to 5 mins, you will observe the pitas puffing up.
The same logic applies to cook it in the skillet too.
Apart from that, the other thing you need to note is to flip the pitas before cooking.
So the rolled portion which was the top portion would hit the skillet or baking stone first and would now be the bottom portion.
Simply place them in a tea towel stacked one above the other. This would keep them warm and soft. The tea towels would retain the moisture and at the same time letting the pitas to breathe.
Follow these 6 simple steps and I assure you that almost all of your pitas would puff.
I am saying almost because sometimes the pitas just don’t puff
Yea even after following all the tips and steps sometime the pitas won’t puff. Don’t get disheartened.. It took me 2 attempts to perfect my pita making skills 😉
Even though it doesn’t puff the base would be still so soft that it makes an excellent base for pizzas. Or simply dip them in hummus and enjoy.
Or bake them again to make pita chips and enjoy with dip of your choice.
Now a heartfelt thank you to all of you who watched my Pita Bread Video and shared your thoughtful and meaningful comments on the same.
Even though I tried to reply to each of you, after a point it was just not possible, extremely sorry about that but definitely, I have read all your posts and few questions that were asked frequently in that video and that is what I would like to address in this one.
It is called Tawa. Basically, it is an iron skillet that I got from India. I am pretty sure you can easily find it in any of the Indian stores near you or you can also choose to order it from Amazon.
So on a scale of 1 to 9 on my gas stove, I heat it on 7. After about 5 to 8 mins when I place my hand a few inches above the skillet I could feel the heat on my palms and that is when I reduce it to 5. And then start cooking my pitas.
You will have to initially test 1 or 2 pitas to understand your gas flame.
I do not use oil while cooking the pitas.
And neither do I oil it separately.
What I mean is every time I wash the skillet, I put it back on the flame to dry it and once dried add in a tbsp or 2 of olive oil and using a paper towel simple spread it all over the skillet evenly and then heat it up until it smokes. Switch off the flame and store it once it is cool to touch.
Basically, that is how I store my iron vessels to avoid the formation of rust.
And that oil which is already present on the skillet is the only Oil I use apart from that I do not add any extra oil while cooking.
I will divide the section into three parts.
First, let us see how to store the pita bread dough?
Simply transfer the dough to an airtight container. Store it in the refrigerator for upto a week. Just pinch out 1 or 2 balls or depending upon how much ever you need for the day and proceed with the steps mentioned in the recipe.
How to store partially cooked pitas?
Well, I would not recommend this method, to begin with.. Because when you cook the pitas on one side and flip to the other side it automatically starts to puff immediately which means we would end up cooking it completely.
So I have not tried it successfully and hence would not recommend it.
How to store cooked pita bread?
You can store cooked pita bread in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Just place a parchment paper in between each pitas. Wrap it with an aluminium foil. Put it in a ziplock bag with correct labelling and then store it.
I personally use the following method to revive my day old Pita’s.
Simply cut the pitas lengthwise like you normally do.. Then using wet hands just dab dab dab the water onto the pitas on both the sides. Place it on a microwave-safe plate and microwave for 10-15 seconds.. and you will have a perfect soft pita as fresh as new ones 😀
Since I just made a small batch of pitas the other day I could not film this portion using pita bread as nothing was left out. So I am using a regular Indian flatbread – Lachha paratha as an example here in the above pictures. Sorry about that guys.
Due to the puffy pockets it gets while cooking or baking, it is usually used as a medium to stuff things in.. The common thing that you would find in all kind of stuffings is a salad.. Other than that you can use any filling like kebabs, falafel, eggs, the meat of your choice just anything you like..
Any sauce or condiments like a different flavour of hummus, tzatziki sauce, basically something to keep it moist.
You can also cut it into triangles add some spices, bake it until crispy to enjoy it like chips.
Yes, you can add any dried herbs or spices to flavour the dough. Just add in along with the dry ingredients itself be it while making regular Pita Bread or this Whole Wheat Pita Bread.
With all those things in mind, let us see how to make Whole Wheat Pita Bread
Learn all the tips and tricks and the right steps needed to make Instant Pot whole wheat pita bread. And upon your suggestion find the recipes for hummus, falafel, balela salad and tzatziki sauce.
Dissolve yeast in the water and add it to your dry ingredients and combine together until the flour is hydrated. Transfer to the worktop dusted with some whole wheat flour and then knead the dough
After about 10 mins of kneading add a tbsp of oil and knead again until you reach the soft, pliable and tacky dough stage which would take another 15 mins of kneading. You would have to approximately knead the dough for 25 mins in total. Add extra flour while rolling the dough as needed
Feel free to cut short the kneading time to 10-15 mins by choosing to knead the dough in a stand mixer.
Whole Wheat Pita is considered to be a healthier version over its plain flour counter part.
To me in terms of taste and texture both the pitas were equal.. there was not much difference.. both were soft, chewy and flavourful.
Only thing is that I had to knead it for a longer time as compared to the plain flour ones.. but I would say that is a good exercise 😀
The homemade Whole Wheat Pita Bread paired with hummus, falafel, tzatziki sauce and balela salad was one flavourful combination.
Few other bread recipes that I think you might love:
If you thought that this post was informative then definitely let me know by tagging me, tweeting me or Instagram me. I would love to follow you and your posts.
Pin this to your Bread Board on Pinterest.
I will see you soon with yet another one.
Until then
Hugs
Sushma
Peppa Pig Birthday Cake – a cake that would help you win over that cute, innocent and naughty little kiddo.
A step by step guide on how to make a number cake without any number tins or pans, rather made using a round cake which is then filled and frosted with whipped cream and decorated with Peppa pig cake toppers.
Raise your hands if your kids spend their evening time watching Peppa Pig on Youtube!!!
It is my daughter’s current favourite show so when it was time for her birthday, I had already known what was coming – A Peppa Pig Birthday Cake.
So this year on Yoshana’s Birthday her cake has a little bit of everyone’s liking.
She wanted a Peppa Pig Cake – Check
Daddy wanted Pineapple Cake – Check
And mummy wanted to try a number cake – Check.
Haha.. yes a little bit of all our wishes are there in her cake.
Have used my evergreen Pineapple Cake recipe. A detailed recipe for all the components of pineapple cake has already been shared so you can check it out by clicking here.
For a better understanding of the assembly of this Number 3 Peppa Pig Birthday Cake, I have divided it into 6 steps which we will go through one by one in a detailed way.
Starting with the first step would be to actually bake the cake and layer it right.. 😀
To make this Peppa Pig Cake, I have baked 2 “7 inch” pineapple cake.
Divided it into 3 layers each. So in total now I have 6 layers of cake.
Placed the base layer on the cake board. Then filled it with whipped cream, pineapple compote, tutti-fruity and choco chips. Place the second layer on top and repeated the steps until I reached the very top.
Using the same whipped cream that I used for filling I have now crumb coated the cake as well. Allow it to chill for a minimum of 30 mins.
All these steps are explained in a more detailed manner in Moist Eggless Pineapple Cake blog post. You can also find the detailed recipe from there.
However, the cake flavours totally depend upon your personal liking. You can also go for plain vanilla cake, chocolate cake or chocolate caramel cake etc or as per your client’s needs.
I would advise to place the 2 cakes side-by-side and do each step simultaneously. This would save a ton of your time.
These days home baking, cake baking and cake decorating has gained so much popularity and grown so much that there are new trends and techniques coming up every other day. Be it the cake popsicles or alphabet cake some trends have taken the internet by storm.
One such trend that I have been observing for a really long time has to be covering the cake board to match the colours, theme or decoration of your cake.
It was not very popular when I was a child. Growing up I have never seen this but now you can see it everywhere.
So for our Peppa Pig Birthday Cake, the concept that I choose was that the family goes to a park to feed the ducks and also sit and relax, play and eat together.
This is one activity that the three of us often do in fact every other weekend I must say.
For which the cake has to be green in colour with grass piping and hence I decided the base that is the cake board to be in sky blue colour with sun and clouds around.
And hence I rolled out blue fondant (or mix some blue food colour to your white fondant and use) to the size of my cake board.
So after rolling some portion of it on my worktop I placed the fondant on my cake board and rolled it over to adjust to its size tucking just a bit underneath the board so that I could also cover the sides of the cake board.
Alternatively, you can also choose a ribbon to tie on the sides of the board. Set this to dry overnight.
It is actually hard to explain the way to cut your cake in plain words.
So I have shown a diagrammatic representation of the same on a paper which I am attaching here for your reference. Or you can also refer the video below for an even better understanding.
Once you have cut the round cake as shown in the pictures simply place them on your blue cake board to form a number 3 shape.
As mentioned I wanted the cake to resemble a park set-up. And hence to pipe on the cake I used a grass tip. Wilton Nozzle no 233 to be precise.
Using my favourite stabilized whipped cream frosting coloured in green and flavoured with pineapple, I simply piped the grasses all over the cake.
However, it was difficult to reach the nooks and corners or to say the inside portion of the cake that is the curved part. So to cover that portion I used a piping bag fitted with a small round tip or nozzle and then simply do random piping all over.. Yes, it would look more like noodles than a grass effect 😉 but still will look good in the end 😀
You do not have to do this. In place of the water effect, you can also make a small puddle and place your pigs there if you wish.
But in this case for making the Peppa Pig Birthday Cake as per our theme or concept, what I did was, melted some white chocolate, add a drop of blue food colouring along with few drops of oil. Combine it all together. Transfer to a parchment paper cone and just make a random drawing of a lake or pond. Just become a child again.. hehe..
Another detailed video that you must check out has to be how to melt chocolate the right way.
Now I do not consider myself an expert in making fondant designs yet so I have not included the steps or method for making all the cake toppers.
However, here are few Youtube links that I referred to make my cake toppers.
Not including any link for making the sun because it is so simple. Just cut out the round shape using a cookie cutter and thin strips for the rays.
And then place them on top of your cake. Place the sun and clouds on the cake board.
That’s it our Peppa Pig Birthday Cake is all done and dusted.
Here is the link to the Peppa Pig Birthday Cake video.
I won’t say this Peppa Pig Birthday Cake tutorial is a simple or easy recipe for that matter.
Yes, a bit time consuming and need some practice but totally worth the happiness on the face of your friends and family 🙂
This was a personal and special post for me.
Every year I look forward to this time to create something beautiful and special for my daughter believing it to stay as a fresh memory forever. On her first birthday, we did a Little Krishna Theme party. You can check all the details of the same from here.
Last year on her second birthday we were in India so I could not make anything special for her.
Hope I continue to create more beautiful memories for her through the medium of food.
And I also hope that you guys enjoyed the tutorial too. I know it is not a perfect cake but still a special one forever.
If you ever recreate this then do let me know by tagging me, tweeting me or instagram me. I would love to follow you and your posts..
Pin this Peppa Pig Birthday Cake tutorial to your cake decorating board
I will see you soon with yet another one
Until then
Hugs
Sushma.
Buttercream Flowers is one of the easiest and the prettiest way to decorate your cakes or cupcakes. In this post find the exact steps to make not 1 or 2 but 5 different buttercream flower cupcakes decoration in a step by step pictorial as well as video tutorial format.
For the ease of convenience, I have divided this flower making tutorial into two posts –
The most common type of Buttercream that works best for making a buttercream flower cake or buttercream flowers cupcakes has to be the American Buttercream Frosting. I have shared a detailed post on how to make the perfect buttercream aka Buttercream 101 in a separate post. Definitely check it out before we start making the flowers.
Being sturdy enough to hold on the piped flowers, American Buttercream is most preferred frosting.
The other frosting that you could use can be Swiss meringue or Italian Meringue Buttercream.
However, I would like to bring your attention to my latest addiction – Condensed Milk Buttercream Frosting which is also known as Russian Buttercream Frosting. Oh my God!! If you haven’t tried it yet you should right away.. just 2 ingredients and it tastes so yum, silky smooth and just delicious.
This according to me is the best buttercream for piping flowers on a cupcake.
And the flowers that you make out of this are so smooth, silky and has an amazing shine to it. Also, it is subtly sweetened keeping the balance, unlike American buttercream which is just uber sweet and also has a crusting finish.
Other softened buttercreams like French is just not suitable for piping flowers.
Apart from buttercream, I have seen flower cupcakes made out of non-dairy whipping cream too. I have not tried it yet and also let us focus on buttercream frosting for today’s recipe keeping the whipped cream for some other day.
If you were to use the buttercream for filling and frosting the cake you would prefer light and fluffy frosting that would melt in your mouth.
However, to make buttercream for flowers, you should have the cream to be little denser and stiff so that it holds the shape beautifully and does not fall off.
The denser consistency helps eliminate air bubbles and pipes thinner petals with really nice, crisp edges.
To achieve that a method similar to that of making Korean Buttercream Flowers is followed wherein the butter and meringue are cold and then whipped until smooth.
I am yet to try that method so for today we will stick to using room temperature butter and condensed milk to make this condensed milk buttercream frosting for cupcake decorations.
I will share the method of how to make buttercream roses step by step format using American Buttercream in my Part 2 series.
Coming to the consistency of our Condensed Milk Buttercream frosting it should be just smooth and silky, you absolutely don’t need to chill or refrigerate it.
Now that you have made a perfect Buttercream that is smooth and glossy and you also have saved it from licking straight away from the bowl 😉
So now let us use this buttercream icing for piping.
And you would definitely need some piping tips for the same right!! So I have divided it into 3 categories – Basic, Ninja and Pro.
Basic as in the tips that you must own for making basic and simple buttercream flowers like Tip No 103. This is the most commonly used tip for making roses especially. With this same tip, you can make so many flower designs.. I have shared two today but this is one of the basic versatile tips that you need.
The other basic tip to include in your collection is Tip 68 – Leaf Tip.
I agree that buttercream cupcake flowers on its own look beautiful but with a little accent of leaves here and there it looks even more realistic.
Tip 1M is one of my go-to tips for cake decoration. It is just perfect to pipe Buttercream Hydrangea.
Coming to the Ninja category would be Tip no 120 or Tip No.122 These are similar to the 103 tips just that it is curved and that one is straight.
So this is a perfect tip to make a closed bud for rose flowers or even peony.
Another tip that I would include in the Ninja Category would be Tip 349. This is a variation of leaf petal tip that looks so pretty when piped <3
Now, these are not must-haves in your collection but with these, you can try different flowers other than the rose like CHRYSANTHEMUM or Dahlia.
Again let me clarify I have not categorized these on the skill levels but actually on the must-have basic tips to some which you can buy at a later stage too.
Please Note:
All these tips number are from Wilton range of piping tips. However, I do not own Wilton piping nozzles whereas mine is a collection of 24 nozzles set from a nearby local store. That means even you do not need to buy branded nozzles, to begin with 🙂
To make realistic and beautiful looking simple Buttercream Flowers I like to go with lighter tones of rose pink, yellow or simply white.
The ones that you actually get in the bakery is actually too dramatic unless that is what you want to make like a really white cake and red rose – perfect for Valentine’s but otherwise I would prefer light or the ever trending pastel shades.
When it comes to colouring less is more. So always start with a drop of buttercream or simply dip a toothpick in the colour of your choice and transfer that to the buttercream and mix well.
The main reason to do this is that when it comes to colouring buttercream or any frosting for that matter, the colour darkens upon standing. So no matter what shade you begin with the next day the flowers would look a shade darker than what you actually started with.
I have always used Gel Food Colours to colour my buttercream and I would recommend the same to you. The advantage of using gel food colours is that Gels are usually water-based which makes them a bit softer and being softer consistency makes them easier to measure in specific amounts like for example you can squeeze out one drop at a time.
So finally, let’s get started with buttercream flowers tutorial
Tip No: 27
Buttercream Colour: Yellow and Brown
Start by applying a base coat of yellow colour onto the sides of your cupcakes.
Holding the piping bag at an angle say around 30 degrees to the cupcake, apply some pressure to release the buttercream, leave the pressure while dragging the piping bag towards you at the same time to a height that you are satisfied with to create a pointed end. Repeat the process to complete one circle of petals on all around the cupcake.
Holding the piping bag at an angle would give the petals a lifted look. You will be applying this little trick to all the other cupcake flowers too.
To create the second layer of petals, the starting point would be the centre of two petals. Refer the attached pic below for clear understanding. Again this would be the same trick for all the other flowers too.
Repeat the above step to create this inner circle of petals.
PRO TIP: Reserve some yellow colour buttercream to make the pollens inside. Isn’t that supposed to be brown?? Ya simply add brown colour to it rather than making a separate one from scratch. I found this trick also helps reduce wastage. 🙂
So for piping the pollens we would use a small star tip say Tip No 13 and simply pipe the centre of the cupcake.
And there you have it beautiful Sunflower Cupcake.
This is one of the easiest and my personal favourite way of decorating with buttercream. Looks so intricate and complicated right with the purple petals and simple while centre but you will be surprised to learn how easy it is to make one.
Tip No : 1M
Buttercream Colour: Purple and White or plain
To a piping bag fitted with your nozzle add in the purple buttercream. With the back of your spoon spread the buttercream onto the sides of your piping bag creating a hollow centre.
Fill in the hollow centre with plain or white coloured buttercream.
PRO TIP: In your mixing bowl squeeze out a bit of the buttercream until you actually start seeing two-toned colour coming out.
And then to make the flower pattern on the cupcake, simply apply pressure to release the buttercream. In this case, there is no need to drag them.
Just like magic, you would get that purple petals and white centred effect.
Feel free to combine any colour of your choice 😀
Not sure what these flowers are called since we are using petal tip I have named them so.
Tip No: 103
Buttercream Colour: Rose Pink
Pro Tip: When you reach the inner circle make sure to pipe in odd numbers by counting to exactly 5 or 7 petals.
To pipe this petal flower cupcake we need to follow an inverted “U” shape pattern. So starting from the left-hand side apply pressure to make an arch coming to right-hand side creating an inverted U shape. Continue the same pattern throughout the circle.
Make 3 circles in total.
In the inner circle make sure to count to 5 or 7 and then just pipe the bud using the same nozzle
I had also used this method to make a pattern on the entire cake once while I was making a Pineapple Cake for a friend. Attaching the picture of it for you guys..
Tip No : 81
Buttercream Colour: Purple
For making this particular flower you will have to start by applying pressure drag upwards but while releasing, release it in a curved motion so that it stands upright..
Repeat the entire circle until you reach right to the centre.
Please remember to change the angle with each inner circle so that by the time you reach the centre it is almost 90 degrees to the cupcake.
Tip No: 103
Buttercream Colour: Rose Pink
Start by piping a dollop in the centre to create a bud.
The first inner circle has to have 3 petals. The technique is like creating an arch from left to right overlapping the first arch.
Likewise, the next circle needs to have 5 petals. Create small petals in the beginning and as you reach the very end the petal size increases.
And that was the 5 different Buttercream Flowers that we were trying to learn today.
A step by step pictorial and video tutorial to making different types of BUTTERCREAM FLOWERS for cupcakes and cakes using tips and techniques that is perfect for beginners.
Beat the softened butter until smooth creamy and paler in colour. Add in the condensed milk and beat until stiff.
Next in goes the vanilla essence. Beat that well too. Your condensed milk buttercream frosting is ready.
Divide it into separate bowls and colour it as per your needs by just adding a drop at a time.
Make flower patterns following the step by step method as mentioned in the paragraphs above using the specific tips or nozzles or you can also follow the video tutorial attached to the recipe card.
I have used my favourite vegan cupcakes recipe as the base. You can also choose to use milk in place of water in that recipe to get a more moist and soft cupcake as I did in this recipe.
Find a detailed recipe of BUTTERCREAM 101 by clicking here.Â
Practise is the key to pipe beautiful flowers on a cupcake. So don't feel bad if you could not make it in the first go, practise and practise until you perfect the art.Â
One of the best things to make with buttercream flower cupcakes is a bouquet.
Start by covering the cake board with fondant.
The pattern to arrange the cupcake flowers is 2-3-2. That is first place 2 cupcakes, then 3 cupcakes below them and then 2 cupcakes to create a circle of 6 cupcakes with 1 cupcake in the centre.
Roll the green fondant to create stems.
Cut out green fondant using leaf cutter to make leaves or simply pipe using a leaf tip.
Gift to your mother this mother's day and make her feel specialÂ
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I hope you found this tutorial post helpful.
If you recreate any of these flowers or if you found these instructions informative then definitely let me know by tagging me, tweeting me or Instagram me. I would love to follow you and your posts.
Pin this to your cake decorating board
I will see you soon with yet another one
Until then
Hugs
Sushma.
A decadent Indian dessert or to say Indian sweets inspired cake; this Gulab Jamun Cake is literally going to sweep you off your feet. Completely Egg-Free this moist, sweet, light and fluffy fusion Gulab Jamun Cake is what you need to make any occasion special.
Gulab Jamun Cake is something that I am really gonna hold close to my heart.
You know why? (How would you.. so stupid of me 😛 )
That is because I baked this cake for my daughter who turned 3 last week. It is truly said with kids days are longer and years are shorter. How I wish to go back to the day when I held her for the first time <3
Awwww… I know right!!
Well, recently I got an opportunity to bake this for a client and I was so so impressed with the gulab jamun decoration that I had to recreate the exact same design for my daughter. Not only that but also I wished to share with you all because IMO it is one of the beautiful cakes I have made so far.
Indian inspired cupcakes and cakes are taking over the market these days..
On my last visit to India, each and every bakery shop that I visited had some or the other kinds of fusion cake in the display. The most popular one was, of course, Rasmalai Cake. (Let me know if you would like to have a video post on Rasmalai Cake since it is such a common cake I am not sure of making it anytime sooner.)
I also had the chance to taste Kaju Katli Cake which was pretty good too.
Now there are two kinds of people – One who likes fusion cake and ones who are totally against it… Which category do you belong to?
To make Gulab Jamun Cake you would, of course, need some gulab jamuns.
Gulab jamun is a milk-solid based sweet from the Indian subcontinent.
These milk solids, known as khoya, are kneaded into a dough, with a small amount of flour (maida), and then shaped into small balls and deep-fried at a low temperature. The balls are then soaked in a light sugar syrup flavoured with cardamom and rose water or saffron.
It is basically a variation of my Eggless Vanilla Cake recipe or to be precise Eggless Fruit Cake recipe.
So instead of vanilla or fruit essence, I have used Rabdi Essence in this recipe.
It is a rabdi flavoured cake, the even light and fluffy layers of cake with soft crumbs are then drenched in the sugar syrup that is scented with rose and saffron, layered with the smoothest cloud-like whipped cream frosting sandwiched with bits and pieces of soft gulab jamun that literally melts in your mouth which is then dressed up in the most amazing silky smooth whipped cream frosting.
A slice of this cake would surely make you close your eyes and enter into the state of nirvana 😀
No no no I am not at all exaggerating here; since everything is made fresh and at home, including the gulab jamuns which are totally homemade you get the best experience ever.
I always prefer to make homemade Rasmalai and homemade Kaju Katli or any Indian sweet like, in this case, homemade gulab jamun for all the fusion cakes, the final outcome has to be impressive.
Surely I would share a detailed post on how to make gulab jamun at home for you guys.
Haha.. sounds silly right.. so obviously you would need a cake base for which I have used the same base recipe from my Fresh Fruit Cake post except that in this case substituted the fruit essence with Rabdi Essence.
Feel free to use any of your favourite cake recipes or check out this simple eggless vanilla cake recipe made without condensed milk that is perfect for beginners.
You can make your own gulab jamun mix using mtr gulab jamun, gits gulab jamun or any gulab jamun packet for that matter.
Or make gulab jamun from scratch like I did, using mawa.
Simply just refer google for gulab jamun near me and just buy it from there. 😉
You would need 10 pieces of gulab jamuns for this cake.
The only type of cream that is available to me here is non-dairy whipping cream so that is what I use to fill my cakes most of the time.
Since it is not as stable as the non-dairy whipping cream that is available back in India, I often make a Stabilized Whipped Cream and use it for frosting my cakes.
Have also used Pistachios and Rose Petals as garnish.
Actually have added some pistachios along with gulab jamuns in the filling so I think this cake can pass out as being named: gulab jamun pistachio cake 😉
[click_to_tweet tweet=”5 tips to make the best ever decadent Gulab Jamun Cake. #snf #indiandesserts #indianinspiredcake” quote=”5 tips to make the best ever decadent Gulab Jamun Cake.” theme=”style5″]
Well, this technique is not only applicable to this cake but for all the cakes that you would cut and serve going forward.
Instead of making a regular triange slice on cakes like we usually do while cutting it, we should cut it into rectangles for serving.
What I mean is make horizontal and vertical cuts like rows and columns and then serve them to your guests.
If you were to cut a triangle slice the max pieces that you would get is 8 in any cake whereas if follow the method of cutting the cake in rows and columns it would serve a large number of guests.
This is exactly what a catering guy would do while serving wedding cakes.
Makes sense right!!
[click_to_tweet tweet=”4 simple steps is all you need to make this luscious Gulab Jamun Cake #snf” quote=”4 simple steps is all you need to make this luscious Gulab Jamun Cake #snf” theme=”style5″]
A decadent Indian desserts or to say Indian sweets inspired cake; this Gulab Jamun Cake is literally going to swipe you off your feet. Completely Egg-Free this moist, sweet, light and fluffy fusion Gulab Jamun Cake is what you need to any occasion special.
Mix sugar and milk in a bowl until homogenous. Whisking continuously add the oil to help it emulsify. Next, add the yogurt and essence and combine together.
In all get away from your regular baked gulab jamun cheesecake or no bake gulab jamun cheesecake and give this interesting Eggless Gulab Jamun Cake recipe a try.
This Cake is
Light with soft crumbs
Moist
Delicious filling
Soft gulab jamuns
Looks so good; Ain’t it?
And if you try this recipe then do let me know by tagging me, tweeting me or Instagram me. I would love to follow you and your posts.
Pin this to your Baking board 
I will see you soon with yet another one
Until then
Hugs
Sushma
Drooling over your favourite Panera Bread Sandwich and wondering how on earth do they make it?? Well, this Panini Bread Recipe is surely gonna blow your mind then..
Soft and Chewy bread customised to your favourite fillings, grilled to perfection and that too right at the comfort of your home. What more could you ask for?
Panini is basically a sandwich but is made with not the regular bread recipe. A panino or panini is a sandwich made using Italian bread.
Off lately, it has gained popularity in bakeries across the country.
And one such bakery that we all know is the Panera Bread. The sandwiches that they sell are so good and trust me with this panini bread recipe you can totally crack it at home.
A classic recipe that uses leftover meat or salad leaves as a filling and is usually pressed in a panini maker and served hot. A great filling sandwich perfect for your lunch.
The crispy grilled bread with your favourite filling and the melting goey cheese – oh my gosh I am sorted for my lunch this weekend. What are your plans?
There is a reason why I am claiming this as the best bread for panini. You can make the best panini using this secret bakery style recipe.
And this is also the trick that I use to make the best Bakery Style Pizza Dough as well.
Won’t keep you waiting for long and that secret thing is to make the “BIGA” or the starter before actually making the dough.
Biga is basically a starter culture or you may say a pre-ferment made from flour and yeast.
Advantages of using Biga:
Apart from the Biga the other panini bread ingredients include:
The usual Flour, Yeast, Salt and Oil.
Other than that
[click_to_tweet tweet=”Find the secret trick to make the best bread for Panini. ” quote=”Find the secret trick to make the best bread for Panini. ” theme=”style5″]
The night before just combine the flour, yeast and water until it comes together as a dough. There is absolutely no need to knead the dough.
Cling wrap and let it ferment overnight.
Just combine all the ingredients – flour, salt, olive oil, honey, yeast dissolved in water into a stand mixer along with the biga that is the starter that you made on the previous night. Knead it in the stand mixer for 8 mins.
Add in the sun-dried tomatoes and mix for 30 sec until it gets incorporated.
A stand mixer really makes your life easier right!!
But if you do not have a stand mixer you can still knead this bread manually. Knead it for 15-20 mins until you get a soft dough.
This dough is not as tacky as the ones we made for Pita Bread but instead is a soft dough similar to our regular Indian chapati dough.
Lightly oil the bowl in which you mixed the dough with some olive oil and spread all around.
Place the dough in it and coat it with oil so that it does not dry out, cover it with a tea towel or cling wrap and then allow it for first proofing – 40 mins.
After 40 mins take the dough out onto your work top. Scale and divide the dough into 100 gms each.
You would get 12 roundels from this recipe.
Lightly tuck the sides of each dough to the bottom and give it a round shape. Check this video on how to shape the bread into roundels. Super helpful for beginners.
Cover the roundels with tea towel and allow an intermediate proofing of 10 mins.
[click_to_tweet tweet=”Beginner’s Tip: Always keep your bread dough covered so that it does not dry out. #snf” quote=”Beginner’s Tip: Always keep your bread dough covered so that it does not dry out. #snf” theme=”style5″]
Take the roundel that you had done first.
Flatten it out.
Take the top portion of the dough and bring it to the centre and press well so that it sticks to the centre really well.
Repeat the same on the bottom side. Take the bottom side and bring it to the centre such that it overlaps the first fold. Seal well.
Turn around and roll it forwards and backwards such that you get two narrow ends and a broad centre. This shape is called “Torpedo shape” in culinary terms.
Shape all the roundels in the same manner.
Using a rolling pin roll the torpedo’s to get an elongated oval shape.
Let it proof for 10-12 mins before hitting the oven.
Bake them in a preheated oven of 160°C for 14-18 mins.
The bread would be pale in colour even after baking. Do not worry that is how it should be. Soft and pale.
Once the bread is cooled completely make a slit in the centre fill in with your favourite filling and then grill in a panini press or panini sandwich maker until crispy and toasted. Enjoy your toasted panini warm 🙂
Cuisinart panini press and Breville panini press are a really good ones to own.
Yes, of course, you can. Even I used my sandwich grill maker for the same. And it turned out absolutely amazing in it.
Cling wrap the panini bread individually and then store it at room temperature for 2 days or in the freezer for upto a month.
When needed let it thaw to room temperature and then slice, fill, grill and enjoy.
The only 6 simple steps to make your own Panera Bread Style Homemade Panini Bread. This soft and chewy bread is the best bread to make panini, sandwiches; when filled with olive oil tomato mozzarella red peppers and grilled to perfection makes an ideal lunch or dinner.
Start by making the biga or starter culture. Mix everything mentioned under the Biga Ingredients and combine to form a dough. No need to knead the dough here. Just mix to form a dough. Cling wrap and let it ferment overnight or a minimum of 8 hours.
Next day to make the dough, take the flour, salt, olive oil, honey and the biga in the stand mixer. Dissolve the yeast in the water and add to the stand mixer. Knead the dough for 8 mins.
After 8 mins add the sun-dried tomato and mix for another 30 sec.
Lightly oil the bowl and transfer the dough into it and allow it to proof for 40 mins.
After 40 mins, scale and round the dough to 100 gms each and allow an intermediate proofing of 10 mins.
Then take a roundel, flatten it and give it a torpedo shape. (Refer the above paragraph for a pictorial representation or check out the video) Using a rolling pin just flatten them to give an oval shape the size of your palm.
Line it on a baking tray that has been pre-lined with parchment paper. Allow it to proof for 10 mins and then bake in a preheated oven of 160°C for 14-18 mins.
Allow it to cool completely before slicing, filling and grilling your favourite sandwich
Now instead of looking for where to get panini bread, make your own with this Panera bread copycat recipes.
If you are someone who truly enjoys good panini bread then definitely try this out yourself and if you do then let me know by tagging me, tweeting me or Instagram me. I would love to connect with you.Â
Pin this to your Bread Board
I will see you soon with yet another recipe
Until then
Hugs
Sushma
Christmas Tree Cupcakes is a fun, decorative and unique festive cupcake perfectly apt for this season!!!
Merry Christmas everyone.. 😀
Christmas Tree Cupcakes using ice cream cones is an ingenious idea that screams Christmas!!
Basically, it is just a plain vanilla cupcake frosted with buttercream on top.
You can also use chocolate cupcake as the base to resemble the bark of the cupcake tree.
Since I have already shared the recipe for the same a couple of times, I thought of using vanilla cupcake as the base for our cupcake Christmas tree decorations.
I just cannot believe we are towards the end of another year.
Time just flies..
It seems the year just started with me turning 29 and now its already Christmas and New Year’s Eve.
So why am I blabbering all of this now?? Hint Hint.. I am turning 30 in a month’s time and can’t be more excited than this..
Yay!!!!
I would definitely be making my Birthday Cake, but for now, let’s talk about these easy Christmas cupcakes – Christmas Tree Cupcakes.
These simple Christmas cupcakes are definitely a show stealer.
The Christmas Tree Cupcakes with ice cream cone is what makes these so easy to recreate.
Definitely, the trees are the highlight of this cupcake. But how to make trees out of icing?
Using a simple buttercream recipe all you need to do is pipe on Ice-Cream cones.
For piping we will use a smaller size open star tip – say Tip 30
If you want you can first start by adding a thin layer of buttercream on top of ice-cream cones. However, I felt there is no need for the same as leaves cover up the entire cone.
Basically just use a green coloured buttercream in a piping bag and holding it at 90 degrees to your cone all you have to do is just apply some pressure and then pull the bag towards you.
The more you pull the bigger the leaves would be. The choice is up to you to at which point you need to stop the length of the leaves.
Cover the entire cone in a circular motion till the tip of the cone to get the desired effect.
Making buttercream Christmas tree would be a breeze to make once you just get a hang of making it. With just one cone you would understand about the length that I am talking about.
There is one more way of making these easy Christmas cupcakes design (trees) – Chocolate covered pretzel tree.
For this use a pretzel stick and place it on a parchment paper. Using white melted chocolate go to and fro over the stick and try to give a tree shape. Then place this on top of your cupcake once the chocolate is set.
How to make Christmas Tree Cupcakes?
Now that you have made the tree cones, your job is super simplified.
Bake a chocolate or vanilla cupcake. Slather some frosting on top and just mess around it for once 😉
Add some desiccated coconut on top for texture and place this cone on top.
How easy it is to make this Christmas cupcake decorations!!!
Christmas is around the corner. And one flavour that dominates this season be it for Christmas cupcake flavors or cookie flavours has to be Peppermint and Ginger.
Today I am using a simple vanilla flavour.
However, you can flavour the cupcake with peppermint and buttercream with ginger if you want to.
Other festive Christmas cupcakes or holiday cupcake ideas apart from these Christmas Tree Cupcakes could be
1. Christmas lights cupcakes
2. Christmas wreath cupcakes
3. Snowman cupcakes using marshmallows
4. Forest cupcakes
OR you make a tree shape using cupcakes, that is, arrange the cupcakes in a triangle shape to make a Christmas tree cupcakes cake. These days pull apart cupcakes cake are a huge trend.
So let us see how to make Christmas cupcakes from scratch
Christmas Tree Cupcakes - An easy diy AWESOME holiday cupcakes ideas that look like snow-covered Christmas trees made using ice-cream cone and simple buttercream frosting would make your holiday baking so fun!!
To the warm milk add vinegar. Give it a stir and set it aside for 5 mins. This is your process to make homemade buttermilk.
In a bowl, sift together maida, baking soda and salt.
Give a mix with spatula and add all the wet ingredients one at a time, including homemade buttermilk.
Combine gently to a cake batter like consistency. Do not overmix.
Using an ice cream scoop or ladle pour equal amounts into a muffin tray that has been pre-lined with cupcake liners.
Bake in a preheated oven of 180°C for 15-18 mins or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Using the paddle attachment of a stand mixer beat the softened butter until creamy say about 5-7 mins
Meanwhile in a separate bowl sift the icing sugar atleast 2 times and keep ready.
Once the butter is pale in colour and cream, start adding 1/3 cup sugar at a time an beat for not more than 1 min.
Scrape the bowl and add the second set of sugar and repeat the process until all the sugar is mixed into the butter.
Scrape the bowl down and add 1 tbsp of cream and beat together. Scrape the bowl down and add a tsp of cream more at a time until the desired consistency is achieved which is spreadable and also pipeable.
Finally add the vanilla extract and beat until mixed.
Take it out of the stand and add a thin layer of frosting on top of the cupcake and spread all around using a small palette knife. Be as messy as you can as this would resemble snow.
To make it more pop up and to give a texture add in some desiccated coconut on top.
To the rest of the buttercream add in the green food colour and beat for one last time until it is evenly mixed.
Transfer the buttercream to a piping bag fitted with small open star nozzle - Nozzle no 30.
Place the cone on top of the cupcake. If you want you can also fill the cone with candies for added surprise.
Holding the piping bag at 90 degrees to the cone start piping the branches. Apply some pressure and then pull towards you. The more you pull towards you larger the size of the leaves would be. So depending upon how big or small you want it to look keep applying pressure and pulling towards you.
Repeat the step to cover the entire cone completely till you reach the very tip of the cone.
To give the added snowy effect dust some icing sugar on top of the cone.
1. The recipe for buttercream mentioned here would make 3-5 tree cupcakes depending upon how big or small you pipe the leaves. You can easily double or triple the quantity to cover the entire 12 cupcakes.
2. While making the buttercream, milk or water can also be used in place of cream.
One of the best Christmas cupcakes that you can make this season has to be this Christmas Tree Cupcakes.
Apart from making these cupcakes using ice-cream cone, there are many different ways in which you can make. For eg:
1. Rice Krispies: Add some condensed milk to the rice Krispy so that it sticks around when you press them together. You can also add some green food colour if you wish to.
Then take a big chunk in your hand and press it to give a tree shape. Decorate with red and green M and M’s
2. Pretzel Trees:
Lay out the pretzel stick on a parchment. Use melted white chocolate or colour it green; transfer to a parchment paper cone and then going to and fro motion on top of the stick make a triangle shape to resemble a tree.
Allow to cool completely and you have your pretzel trees ready.
Before the chocolate cools completely you can decorate it as per your need with sprinkles or M and M’s.
3. Chocolate:
Using the run-outs method that I have shared a couple of times on the blog; just trace out the tree shape using a reference image and place it on your Christmas tree cupcake platter to finish the look.
Just to let you know peanut butter cups are your best friend to use as a tree trunk.
I hope you enjoyed this Christmas Tree Cupcakes recipes and also the other Christmas cupcake ideas along with the Christmas cupcake toppers that I have mentioned in this post.
If you did then do let me know by tagging me, tweeting me or Instagram me. I would love to follow you and your posts.
Hope you enjoy this holidays with holiday cupcakes and holiday cookies.
By the way, you can also follow my Christmas board on Pinterest for more ideas and inspirations for Christmas or I also have this Holidays Recipes board if you want to check it out.
For now, pin this Christmas Tree Cupcakes recipe to your Christmas board
I will see you soon with yet another one
Until then
Hugs
Sushma
Apple Crisp Recipe – warm and soft baked apples topped with crispy crumbly topping; flavoured with cinnamon screams Fall in every bite!!! The only delicious apple crisp recipe you need this season..
Apple Crisp Recipe is one of those classic American desserts that you might find being made in every American household by their grandmothers and mothers; just like how Gulab Jamun is made in every Indian household since ages.
Honestly, I had never heard this dessert back in India not a common dessert there. But the world is so small that many a time you tend to adapt and acknowledge the beauty of other cuisines from all around the world.
Be it the silky smooth pannacotta from Italy, the amazingly moist Tres-Leches Cake from Mexico (videshi version of Rasmalai Cake) or this classic Apple Crisp Recipe from America – I am naturally pulled towards deserts of all kinds.
I am sure some of you are not familiar with this old-fashioned apple crisp recipe. So for those of you wondering WHAT IS APPLE CRISP? let me tell you it is a pretty basic dessert made using cooking apples.
Basically, juicy tart apples are coated with sugar and cinnamon, cooked until soft, layered with crispy crumbly topping and baked to golden.
Served warm with chilled ice-cream on top.
Imagine yourself sitting with your family watching your favourite show on Netflix on a cold Christmas or holiday evening with a warm bowl of baked apples that are soft yet having a bite perfectly sweetened and flavoured with cinnamon topped with a crumbly crispy topping adding a beautiful texture and a caramel flavoured cheesecake ice-cream or a plain vanilla ice-cream.
That’s an explosion of flavour bomb in your mouth.
I absolutely love the idea of warm dessert in this cold evening. And that is why choco lava cake is also my all-time favourite during this time of the year.
And you know what is the best part of this easy Apple Crisp recipe – It can be made ahead of time and kept, can be made for single or two serving or for a crowd. Perfect for your next fall or Thanksgiving party.
Bonus – your house would smell so heavenly you won’t need any candles to brighten the mood of the evening. 😉
You guys might have noticed that I am talking a lot about the crispy crumbly topping.. Gosh I just can’t get over it.. It is so full of texture.. Ok sush, stop diverting and concentrate.. damn meee..
So what was I saying, ya the crumbly topping!!
What is that crumb topping? How do you make a crumb topping? And How do you make crumb topping for apple crisp specifically? OR How do you make the crumble for apple crumble?
Firstly do not get confused with the terms apple crisp and apple crumble. Both of it means the same. Just that this recipe is popularly known as Apple Crisp in the US but in Aussie and NZ it is commonly known as Apple Crumble.
But it is NOT the same as an apple cobbler or an apple pie. Cobblers usually have a biscuit-like topping. And a pie will have a flaky pastry crust.
So both of them means the same and if you notice me swatching the use of the two here and there never mind.
A basic crumble topping is just flour, sugar and butter rubbed together to resemble sand-like texture. Upon baking the butter and flour crisps up adding a crispy texture whereas the sugar lends it the required sweetness.
To make the easy apple crisp topping we have just added additional cinnamon powder because apples, cinnamon and Fall are a match made in heaven. Don’t you agree?
In this recipe, I have shared a different variation of making the crumble topping as compared to the one that we used while making the Apple Crumble Cake recipe.
By sharing both the methods I just wanted you guys to opt to whichever way you are comfortable with. Texture and Taste-wise there is absolutely no difference. 🙂
What kind of apples do you use for Apple Crisp recipe?
Since we would be cooking the apples first and then baking it, you really need a variety that would retain its shape throughout.
I have used the Granny Smith variety here because they’re so firm and they hold up well for baking without turning to mush.
So if you are wondering What kind of apples make the best apple crisp – Granny Smith Apples is your go to. However, you can also try Empire or Honey Crisp… or mix all three. Totally up to you.
Also to peel or not to peel apples is again totally up to you.
Now is the time when you might be having an abundant stock of apples growing in your gardens or you might have handpicked them or you just happen to see fresh in the market; this is the perfect way to use them all up.
Because the Apple Crisp Recipe calls for a lot of apples; yes it might seem a lot while chopping them into even sizes but trust me they would wilt a little while cooking them down. So you definitely need a lot, to begin with.
Today I am sharing with you all the ultimate apple crisp without oats.
But generally, you will find easy apple crisp with oats or to say apple crumble with oats. Adding oats would definitely add an additional texture.
I am sometimes like this horse with the blind shutter on. While I was learning bakery in school here, we had been taught the crumble topping without oats so that is what I am following till now.
However, if you like oats you can definitely make this apple crisp with quick oats or apple crisp recipe with cooking oats or apple crisp with old-fashioned oats. The oatmeal crumb topping for apple crisp would definitely lend its own unique taste.
I think I have already talked enough for now, let us see How do you make easy apple crisp now and then I will share few tips on how you can make it ahead of time for parties, how to store them, Can you freeze apple crisp? etc.
How to make homemade apple crisp?
The ultimate combination of baked apples and the crispy crumble topping with a punch of cinnamon - this Best Apple Crisp Recipe screams Fall in every bite.
Start by preparing the crumble topping. In a bowl, combine together flour, sugar, salt and cinnamon.
Melt the butter in a cast iron pan and once melted add it to the flour mixture. Using a fork just mix everything together and keep aside.
For the apples: Start by chopping them into even thickness. Add it to the same pan in which you had melted the butter.
Top with everything else - sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, cardamom, salt and lemon juice. Mix well and put it over med-low heat.
Combine everything until it thickens a bit around 5-6 mins. You still want the apples to retain their shape.
Top with the prepared crumble topping generously and put it in a preheated oven of 180°C for 20-25 mins until the crumble crisps up and turns golden brown.
Serve warm with ice-cream or whipped cream
Notes:
1. You need not worry about melting down the butter and then mixing. You can also follow the method that I have mentioned in the Apple Crumble Cake recipe and choose whichever way you find it easy.
2. Do not have an iron skillet. No worries you can make it in any pan. Just transfer the apples to a bake safe bigger size ramekin, top it with crumble topping and bake.
Are you thinking How to serve Apple Crisp?
You can enjoy it warm or cold. But trust me it tastes heavenly when warm. I assure you this would be the best apple crisp you’ll ever have.
I like to take out a generous amount of it into a bowl and also like to add some caramel flavoured ice-cream on top. However, you can also choose to have plain vanilla ice-cream with some caramel sauce (I have a super easy recipe for homemade caramel sauce with all tips and tricks) drizzled on top. That would taste heavenly too.
Or simply go for a simple whipped cream topping.
Can you freeze apple crumble?
Follow the easy apple crisp recipe. Once done let it cool completely, then cover it with a double layer of aluminium foil.
You can then freeze this up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then warm in a 350°F oven for 20-25 minutes alert…l heated through.
For a single serving you can also choose to microwave it for 30-40 sec. Microwave apple crisp tastes so fresh and warm.
Just an alert.. I find that frozen apple crisp or refrigerated apple crisp are not as crispy as the fresh ones.
How do you store apple crumble?
To store, let cool to room temperature, gently place a paper towel on top of the crisp to absorb condensation. Cover tightly with foil, plastic wrap, or a lid.
Follow the reheating steps mentioned above to enjoy it warm.
How do you make this Apple Crisp Recipe ahead of time for a party or for a crowd?
You follow the exact steps mentioned in the recipe to make the crumble topping and making apple crisp.
However, you do not combine the two.
Instead make your crumble topping; add it to a zip lock bag and store in refrigerator.
Prepare your apples and once it cools completely transfer it to a bigger size ramekin and place that in the refrigerator too.
Just 30 mins prior to serving, add the crumble topping on top of the apples in the ramekin place in the preheated oven of 180°C for 20-25 mins until crisp and serve warm 🙂
I hope you enjoyed this recipe to make apple crisp. If you did then do let me know by tagging me, tweeting me or instagram me. I would love to follow you and your posts.
Pin this to your desserts or winter board
I will see you soon in my next one.
Until then
Hugs
Sushma
