Tiramisu

My mom's friend introduced us to this recipe many years ago. Ever since it has been a favorite no-bake dessert in my collection. This is such a easy recipe and can be made a day ahead of time. In fact, I think it always tastes better on the second day when the Ladyfingers have softened and the flavors intensify. I've definitely had leftover tiramisu for breakfast in the past and always thought it tasted better than the night before.

When it comes to choosing the Ladyfingers, I have realized that the ones from Trader Joe's are better for this recipe since they soften sooner than other brands. However, I've made this plenty of times without the Trader Joe's brand and still really enjoyed it. In those instances, I would allow the tiramisu to sit in the fridge overnight. There are raw eggs in this, which I know some people do not eat, so keep that in mind if you make this for somebody else. Also, if you don't have any chocolate at home when you make this, you could sprinkle the top of the tiramisu with cocoa powder instead of shaved chocolate.

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Frozen Frangelico Coffee with Cream

I realize frozen drinks aren't exactly the right thing for winter, but the flavor combination in this one is perfect. Although I made mine a frozen drink, you could just as easily serve it warm. What's makes this so delicious is the combination of the hazelnut from the Frangelico and maple flavored cream. I'm not a coffee drinker, but I thought this looked pretty, so I made this for other people. I tried some myself and really enjoyed they way the flavors all came together, but one taste was about all I could do. Don't skip the step of adding the maple syrup to the cream since that is what stands out the most (at least in my non coffee liking opinion). This is one of those recipes where you can tweak everything to your personal preferences. If you prefer less Frangelico, use a bit less. If you want the cream sweeter, you can add a bit of sugar as well.

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Coffee Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

The ice cream obsession continues as every member in my family buys an ice cream maker (which I then adopt and temporarily claim as my own). Growing up, my dad's favorite ice cream flavor was coffee, which meant the freezer was always stocked with a tub of the stuff. It also meant that my whole family has grown to love coffee ice cream. While reading through my sister's copy of The Perfect Scoop last week, I saw a coffee ice cream recipe in there and knew I had to make it for my dad.

In my first ice cream making lesson, my sister taught me the trick to getting soft, creamy ice cream: liquor. I decided that I wanted to stick with that texture (how can you not love creamy ice cream?) and added some Kahlua to the ice cream. And because I can be a 5 year old sometimes, I threw in some chopped chocolate. You can omit the Kahlua if you're really against it, but the ice cream will get pretty hard. You don't actually taste the Kahlua, but you will appreciate the ice cream consistency it creates. At this point, I think I will add liquor to most of the ice cream I make (when it's appropriate). Having tried various ice cream consistencies, I prefer the "spiked" ones.

I'm currently snacking on bowl number 2 of this goodness as I type. It's addictive, and possibly slightly dangerous in my hands. Anyone that knows me is aware of how hyper I can get, especially with the addition of caffeine and sugar. You can buy decaf coffee beans if you're not into the caffeinated ice cream concept. You can also add lots more chocolate if you want, but I prefer the surprise bite of chocolate here and there over 10 chocolate chips per bite. So before I start bouncing off the walls, I will give you this oh-so-good recipe. It rivals Haagen Dazs, which is considered the best coffee ice cream in my book (sorry Haagen Dazs). Have I talked you into an ice cream maker yet?
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Mocha Cupcakes

When I first decided to begin blogging, I asked around to see what people wanted me to cook or bake. One of my friends suggested a cappuccino cupcake, which I have now turned into a mocha cupcake. Similar concept, just more of a chocolate flavor. To begin this experiment, I used a recipe recommended to me by my sister's friend a couple months ago. The original recipe is Martha Stewart's One-Bowl Chocolate Cupcake (note: this is not the same recipe she has on her website). I added some instant coffee to the recipe and made up a mocha buttercream frosting to go on top. Had I not been warned, I would have been convinced I was missing an ingredient. The batter is extremely runny, making it a pain in the butt to pour into the cupcake liners. Do not overfill them or they will expand too much and have those kinda ugly, huge, and blob-like cupcake tops. But have faith, within 10 minutes of baking, these cupcakes puff up and look delicious.

This cupcake is light, airy, and moist. I have always avoided any baking recipe that requires cocoa powder, but this one was amazing. And don't tell Martha, but my cocoa powder was most definitely not dutch-process. There's only one kind of cocoa powder in my local grocery store: Nestle baking cocoa powder. It still turned out prefect. Give these cupcakes a try, and if you want them to be plain chocolate cupcakes, just omit the instant coffee. Everything else is the same, even the warm water. I'm not sure why they get inverted and re-inverted in the cooling directions (possibly the get them out? no clue, but tell me the reasoning if you know it). Other than that, this recipe is easy, straightforward and at this point I think it's foolproof. I forgot to add sugar to the recipe until I tasted the batter and realized it still had that bitter cocoa powder flavor. I threw it in at the end and these still worked out great. And I don't have a mixer either, just used a whisk and bowl. Oh and if you've ever eaten the Belwood Bakery (in Los Angeles) cappuccino muffins, the batter tastes just like them.


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