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Chocolate Stout Cupcakes

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa, plus more for dusting finished cupcakes
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups all-purposeflour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• Pinch fine salt
• 1 bottle stout beer (recommended: Guinness)
• 1 stick butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened at room temperature
• 3/4 to 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 (1-pound) box confectioners' sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cocoa, sugar, flour, baking soda, and salt.

In another medium mixing bowl, combine the stout, melted butter, and vanilla. Beat in eggs, 1 at time. Mix in sour cream until thoroughly combined and smooth. Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet mixture.

Lightly grease 24 muffin tins. Divide the batter equally between muffin tins, filling each 3/4 full. Bake for about 12 minutes and then rotate the pans. Bake another 12 to 13 minutes until risen, nicely domed, and set in the middle but still soft and tender. Cool before turning out.

To make the icing:

In a medium bowl with a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese on medium speed until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the heavy cream. On low speed, slowly mix in the confectioners' sugar until incorporated and smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use. Icing can be made several hours ahead and kept covered and chilled.

Top each cupcake with a heap of frosting and dust with cocoa.

Glazed Irish Tea Cake

 
                        -----cake-----
   1 1/4  teaspoons     Baking powder
     3/4  cup           Unsalted butter -- room temper
     1/4  teaspoon      Salt
   1      cup           Sugar
   1      cup           Dried currants
   2      teaspoons     Vanilla
     2/3  cup           Buttermilk
   2      lg            Eggs
                        -----glaze-----
   3      ounces        Cream cheese -- room temperatu
     1/2  cup           Confectioners' sugar -- sifted
   1 3/4  cups          Cake flour
   2      teaspoons     Fresh lemon juice

PREHEAT OVEN TO 325F, with rack in center of oven. Generously grease a 9-inch (7-cup capacity) loaf pan. Dust with flour; tap pan over sink to discard excess flour. Cut piece of parchment paper or waxed paper to fit bottom of pan. Set aside. FOR CAKE, use mixer to cream butter, sugar and vanilla until fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating each until fluffy. Add cream cheese. Mix until well combined. Sift flour, baking powder and salt together. Put currants in small bowl. Add 1/4 cup of flour mixture to currants. Stir currants until well coated. Add remaining flour to batter, alternating with buttermilk. Mix until smooth. Use wooden spoon to stir in currants and all of the flour. Stir until well combined. Transfer batter to prepared pan. Smooth surface with spatula. Bake until well-browned and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour, 25 minutes.
Cake will crack on top. Let cake rest in pan for 10 minutes. Use flexible metal spatula to separate cake from sides of pan. Carefully remove cake from pan to cooling rack. Spread glaze on warm cake. Let cake cool completely. Cake can be stored 3 days at room temperature in foil. Cake can also be frozen up to 3 months, wrapped airtight.

 FOR GLAZE, combine sugar and lemon juice in small bowl. Stir until smooth.

 ABBY MANDEL - PRODIGY GUEST CHEFS COOKBOOK

Amazingly Easy Irish Soda Bread

"A good old fashioned soda bread with just the basic ingredients. Buttermilk gives this crusty loaf a good flavor. 

Ingredients

• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup margarine, softened
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1/4 cup buttermilk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a large baking sheet.
2. In a large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and margarine. Stir in 1 cup of buttermilk and egg. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead slightly. Form dough into a round and place on prepared baking sheet. In a small bowl, combine melted butter with 1/4 cup buttermilk; brush loaf with this mixture. Use a sharp knife to cut an 'X' into the top of the loaf.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean, about 30 to 50 minutes. You may continue to brush the loaf with the butter mixture while it bakes.

Orange Zinger Cheesecake Recipe

Ingredients:
***Crust***
6 graham crackers (whole)
vegetable oil spray
***Filling***
3/4 cup water
3 tablespoons cornstarch
8 ounces cream cheese
8 ounces tofu (regular)
2/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 medium orange, juiced and zested

Directions:

Pour about 2 cups of water into slowcooker (1/2-inch) and place trivet or upside-down bowl into cooker. Cover with lid and turn onto high. 

Meanwhile, place graham crackers in food processor. Process into crumbs (you should have about 1 cup). Spray a 8-inch round cake pan with vegetable oil spray and place crumbs into bottom of pan, spreading them evenly across bottom. 

Stir together the water and cornstarch and place into blender jar. Add remaining filling ingredients, except the orange juice and zest. Blend for 1-2 minutes until creamy, scraping down sides of jar with spatula occasionally. When filling is creamy, add orange juice and zest and whiz for 3 seconds, until just incorporated. 

Pour filling on top of graham cracker crumb crust. Place pan on top of trivet, cover with lid and cook for 3 hours on HI. When time is up, remove lid, turn off slowcooker, and allow cake to cool for 30-60 minutes. When cool enough to handle, remove cake pan and place in fridge to chill, 2-3 hours before serving.

This recipe from CDKitchen for Orange Zinger Cheesecake serves/makes 8