White Chocolate Christmas Cake

I knew I wanted white chocolate cake.  What I didn't know was what to top it with.

But hubby helped with the solution... cookies and cream!

And it's really delicious!

Really yummy!

Reese-this-Christmas Chocolate Cake

Finally, we've finalized our offerings for this Christmas.  Fudgy Callebaut Brownies and Stuffed Blondies were easy choices, as is the Banana Chocolate Chip Cake of last Christmas (2012).  The Carrot Cake will still be available but in limited quantity only because of a limited supply of carrots.

The focus for this Christmas is chocolate.  So we decided on a chocolate cake and a white chocolate cake.  The dilemma we encountered was how to adorn the cakes without using frosting.  Frosting would be a problem especially if we had a lot of orders since I did not have a separate refrigeration unit and the cakes would definitely not fit in my fridge!

The idea actually came to me when I saw rocky road brownies at a kiosk in the nearby mall.  I realized I could use a variety of toppings instead of icing.

So here's our chocolate cake, topped with chopped Reese cups!

A peek inside...

The cake is approximately 6 inches in diameter, single layer, no filling.  It's a bit taller than our carrot or banana cake.  The cake itself is somewhat bland (this is deliberate on our part) because it is meant to be complemented by the sweet and decadent topping!

Stuffed Blondies

Blondies are brownies without the chocolate... this is how it was explained to me and this is the same way I explain it.

This is definitely a favorite, with a caramel-ly taste, and a punch from whatever "stuffing" is used.  Most common are chocolate chips, chopped chocolate candy bars, dried fruits, nuts...

The picture below, in particular, is stuffed with Snickers Peanut Butter Squares (chopped up) and is absolutely my favorite!

We're getting ready for Christmas!  How about you?

Callebaut Brownies

My signature brownies are fudge-y, with a crust.  But it is not one that is fast to make - it is so time consuming (whoever thought that brownies could be time consuming?!?!!)  But those brownies are special because it was a recipe where my mom and I worked together (rare moment indeed).

But these days I want a fast and easy, yet very delicious brownie that I could whip up in a flash (read as done in an hour and after fast cooling, ready to send out in another hour!).  The result?  These brownies, made with Callebaut brand.

It is intensely fudgy and very moist... extremely chocolate-y too!  And they are sooooo good straight from the refrigerator, or the freezer!!! 

I'm seriously considering offering these as Christmas goodies!  In boxes of 12...

This is now my favorite brownie!!!

Loaded Strawberry Shortcake

This is a cake inspired by something I had a taste of on an out-of-town trip.  That particular cake was a 2 layer strawberry chiffon cake, filled with whipped cream and chopped strawberries, and frosted with whipped cream, topped with slices of fresh strawberries.

Now, I don't particularly like strawberries, unless they are really sweet, and only then if they're dipped in a specific blend of cream, but when I saw the (really) big, plump, really red strawberries at the local market in Baguio, I bought 2 kilos!!!  Price be dxxxxd,  I was determined to make MY strawberry shortcake!  One that is chock-full of strawberries!  From the cake itself, to the filling, frosting, topping... EVERYTHING!

So here are the (2 kilos) strawberries, hulled and cleaned - the smaller ones got chopped, while the larger ones were reserved for the cake topping.

Presenting...  my creation - which I fondly call THE

Loaded Strawberry Shortcake...

3 layers of strawberry chiffon cake (no added flavorings or color!), filled with strawberry cream, with chopped (fresh) strawberries, frosted with strawberry whipped cream, and topped with fresh strawberries!

A peek inside the cake -

And, as usual, I did not add any preservatives, artificial flavors or colors.  So, the cake layers did not have a pink hue, rather the cake layers were more yellowish.  The strawberry cream filling had pureed strawberries as well as chopped strawberries.  The whipped cream is strawberry as well (you can see the strawberry bits) but both filling and frosting are pale pink due to the "natural coloring" of the strawberries.

The only "problem" with this cake?  The lack of supply of fresh strawberries in the local market.  This cake was made with about 2 kilos of strawberries!  Talk about being loaded!!!  But the cost really is  prohibitive!!!

But I would like to offer this cake.  It's just too yummy not to share... I just have to figure out how (and without skimping on the strawberries!). :)

Mochaccino

Mocha is another favorite flavor.  Mocha, as Wikipedia explains, could refer to a coffee drink or a coffee bean (amongst others).  Mocha, as a flavor, however, is often thought of as a mix of coffee and chocolate flavors.  Mochaccino is a coffee drink with chocolate.

MaBelle's version is a mocha cupcake, frosted with coffee (or mocha, or chocolate) buttercream, with a sprinkling of cocoa (and cinnamon, optional), topped with a coffee bean (for decoration purposes only).

The cupcakes are yummy (of course!).  Although personally, I think the coffee flavor overpowers the chocolate a bit.  Then again, mocha is coffee with chocolate, not the other way around... ...