An Ode to Coffee Lovers...

For a self-proclaimed foodie/domestic goddess, I have been quite bad at documenting my feats. Most times I miss a good Asian-food-photo moment- perhaps out of sheer embarrassment at the thought of taking photos at a fancy restaurant, while sometimes I simply cannot be bothered to blog about my cooking. It did not really help being in a student setting either. True, a limited budget for chow can make for a great opportunity at creating something genius (or a disaster), but other elements such as the lack of space, time and equipment does put a damper at any possibility for a veritable culinary moment. Now that I have finished with University and have settled back home, I can finally recharge my inner Nigella Stewart (get it?) and try out new recipes, create bizarre concoctions and to put it simply, eat. 

I was a bit restless tonight and I wasn't sure why. Maybe it was that I now have nothing but time in my hands, seeing as I am now finished with school...for a long while. Perhaps it was caused by the eight cups of strong coffee I've had since I began my day at 1pm, which would make sense since my right eyelid has also started twitching again. Don't worry, it is not THAT creepy. It just tends to happen when my body feels like it's on caffeine overload. Or if it needs more. Whatever the case, I decided to bake something since it has always been my go to treatment. It's my Chicken Soup for the Soul if that makes sense. There's something in the formulaic chaos of it all that just gets me all Zen-esque. Not to mention, it was around 9pm when I started so the family were all resigned in the salon and I had the quiet kitchen all to myself. It was going to be either a classic Victoria or Vanilla cupcakes since I was really just looking at doing something and I did not want any extra fuss for the time being. However, while I was getting my stuff prepared, I spied about a cup of coffee left from this morning's pot. I thought about Tasha and how the last cake she made was a coffee cake, et voila, I went for that option. It was only going to be a case of substitution anyway so it was still a no-fuss recipe. I referred the Joy of Baking's Stephanie Jaworski's Vanilla Cupcake recipe- only instead of using milk, I opted for Starbucks' Pike Place Roast. Here's a quick run through of the technicalities...

INGREDIENTS:

BATTER:
113g butter, room temperature
3 large eggs
130g caster sugar
195g flour (I used self-raising)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
60ml (1/4 cup) of coffee

GLAZE:
2 tablespoons of Jack Daniel's Whisky
A shot of espresso (or more...depending on consistency and volume you want)
Icing sugar

TOPPING:
Peanut Brittle, roughly pounded

I started thinking of how I could vamp it up a little bit. Buttercream seemed too heavy for the evening and I realised I didn't have enough butter for the batter and the frosting- just one or the other. So, on a Nigella-esque move of making things work, I grabbed the icing sugar, mixed it with a bit of instant espresso and a couple of tablespoons of Jack Daniels I found hidden by my dad behind the cereal boxes. I call it my Irish Coffee Glaze. Snazzy huh? There was no measuring involved as it was a no-brainer type of thing. Just do as you like and feel for the consistency that you want. I wanted a glossy glaze so I stopped mixing as soon as the glaze covered the back of the spoon a little richly and held its place. And what of a finishing flourish? God forbid Nigella or Martha leave a finishing touch out of the equation! I checked the contents of my pantry and there rested a jar of Salted Peanut Brittle from the Philippines. Bashed quickly in the mortar and pestle, and presto! Crystalline brittle sprinkles. I think I'll have one for breakfast with an espresso. After all, to a real caffeine lover, is there really such a thing as coffee overload? ^^

Until next time! Try out the recipe and tell me what you think.

Love,