Godiva Coffee-Chip Ice Cream

August 5, 2011June 21, 2016 The Culinary Chronicles9 Comments

It’s no secret that I began drinking coffee at an early age…..like at 11 or 12.

But before you judge my upbringing, you’ve got to remember that I’m Vietnamese and cà phê (Vietnamese Coffee) practically runs in our veins. Well, that and nước mắm (fish sauce) of course 🙂

So you can imagine my delight when a box arrived at my door with a few bags of Godiva’s new line of coffee to play around with. There were so may different routes I could have gone with but since July was National Ice Cream month, I decided to make a coffee flavored ice cream using Godiva Chocolate Truffle Coffee. And of course, adding in chocolate was a must!

The end results were AH-MAY-ZING! The coffee flavor was the star but the chocolate shards were such great little bits of surprises throughout the whole thing.

And you want to know a secret?

I didn’t even use an ice cream machine to make this! Yup….totally old school! Thanks to David Lebovitz, all you need to make your own homemade ice cream is a few ingredients, a cold freezer, and a little patience.

Delicious!

And if you’re looking to make an adult version of this ice cream, throw in some Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur! Because after all, why the heck not? 🙂

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Godiva Coffee-Chip Ice Cream
Makes approximately 1 Quart

Ingredients:

1½ Cups Whole Milk
1½ Cups Heavy Cream
3 Large Egg Yolks
2 Large Eggs
½ Cup Sugar
½ Cup Strongly Brewed Coffee (I used Godiva Chocolate Truffle Coffee)
1 Teaspoon Instant Espresso
5 Ounces Dark Chocolate, roughly chopped
1/4 Cup Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur (optional)

Dissolve the espresso into the brewed coffee. Allow the coffee to cool to room temperature.

In a mixing stand, whisk the eggs, yolks and sugar in a bowl for 2 minutes until its pale yellow in color. Heat milk and cream in a medium saucepan until it is near-boiling and turn off heat. Turn the mixer on medium-high and gradually drizzle in ½ of the hot milk/cream into the egg mixture. Once the mixture has been tempered and combined, pour it back into the saucepan with the remaining milk/cream. Heat medium low, stirring constantly, for a few more minutes or until the consistency is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon when dipped in. Turn off heat. Whisk in the coffee/espresso and Baileys (if using). Pour the custard base into a bowl and chill over an ice bath.

Once the custard has chilled, pour it into a glass baking dish and place directly into the freezer for 45 minutes. Pull out of the freezer and use a rubber spatula to vigorously stir the mixture, breaking up any frozen bits. Place back in the freezer and continue to check the mixture every 30 minutes, stirring vigorously as it’s freezing.

When the custard is nearly frozen, take the chocolate and heat over a water bath. Take out the dish and drizzle the chocolate over the top of the custard. The chocolate should harden fairly quick and use the rubber spatula to break it up into small pieces. Transfer the ice cream to a covered storage container until ready to serve.

*If using machine, add the chilled custard base into the machine and follow manufacturer’s directions.

As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program, I received Godiva Coffee. However, all views and opinions expressed here are my own.

Desserts/Pastries

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Irish Cream Buttercream…..Slainte!!

March 9, 2011March 11, 2011 The Culinary Chronicles86 Comments

It’s that time of the year again. When you see tons of postings in honor of St. Paddy’s Day.

Green colored beer and desserts, shamrocks galore, corn beef recipes, Guinness braised meats, and more! As for me, I went all out last year with our Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes with a Baileys Ganache.

I kind of went overboard with them. They literally SCREAMED St. Paddy’s Day with a decadent Guinness Beer cupcake, filled with a chocolate truffle, with spirals of green Baileys buttercream, topped with shamrock sprinkles and wrapped up in a bright green striped cupcake liner. PHEW! Now that is St. Paddy’s!

Those cuppies were decadently delicious and I wanted to bring them back for this year’s St. Paddy’s Day — but a little more “understated”.

I went for the same moist, stout beer cupcakes and Irish cream flavored buttercream—-however, this time around I opted out of the truffle centers and put away my green food coloring. No need….their yumminess speaks for itself.

I chose a simple large round tip to pipe the frosting this time– a Wilton 1A. But as “understated” as I was trying to keep things, I could not resist breaking out the shamrock sprinkles. After all, I don’t get to use them very often — and who couldn’t use a little more luck?

As for the end results……they were delicious! The dark stout beer adds such a subtle nuttiness to the chocolate cupcakes while the Irish Cream buttercream perfectly rounds out the flavors. And if done correctly, the buttercream is so smooth and rich— a dream to pipe out 🙂

So whether you want to go BIG with the GREEN theme or be a little more subtle, Chocolate Stout Cupcakes are definitely the way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day!

And with that dear Friends, SLAINTE!!!

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Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Irish Cream Buttercream
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Makes 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:
1 Cup Stout Beer
1 Cup Unsalted Butter
¾ Cup Quality Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
2 Cups All Purpose Flour
2 Cups Granulated Sugar
1½ Teaspoons Baking Soda
¾ Teaspoon Salt
2 Large Eggs
⅔ Cup Sour Cream

Irish Cream Buttercream:
4 to 5 Cups Confections Sugar
2 Cups Unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 to 5 Tablespoons Irish Cream Liqueur

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line cupcake cups with paper liners.

Prepare the cupcakes: Put the butter with the stout beer in a sauce pan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Whisk in cocoa powder until smooth. Cool slightly.

In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. In a mixer bowl, beat the eggs and the sour cream together. Add the beer/butter/cocoa mixture and beat to combine. Add the flour mixture and beat briefly just to combine. Using a rubber spatula, fold the batter until completely combined, making sure to incorporate little pockets of flour on the bottom so that the batter is of equal consistency everywhere.

Fill the cupcake liners about 2/3 of the way if you want flatter cupcakes and 3/4 if you want domed. Bake for about 17 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of a cupcake comes out clean. Cool completely to room temperature.

Prepare the frosting: In a large mixer bowl, whip the butter for several minutes until very light and fluffy. Slowly add about half of the powdered sugar a few spoonfuls at a time until incorporated. Slowly drizzle the Irish Cream and whip until combined. Add the rest of the powdered sugar until your desired consistency has been achieved.

Assemble: Fill a pastry bag and pipe buttercream on top of cooled cupcakes. Garnish with sprinkles or other adornments. Enjoy!

Note: This makes a lot of buttercream so that you can pipe large mounds on the cupcakes. If you prefer less on your cuppies, halve the amounts.

Desserts/Pastries

Happy St. Paddy’s Day: Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes w/ Baileys Ganache

March 17, 2010February 9, 2011 The Culinary Chronicles13 Comments

Happy St. Patrick’s Day Friends!

It’s true, I’m not of Irish descent..…but this Vietnamese Gal considers herself an equal-holiday opportunist and jumps at the chance for all festivities. And who couldn’t use a bit more luck in their lives? 🙂

So when a friend had suggested making Guinness cupcakes awhile ago—I thought I would take a spin with them for this particular holiday. Plus, some of my favorite foodie bloggers have been reviving this tasty treat—and who am I not to trust their judgment? 🙂

After much research, I settled on Smitten Kitchen’s “Chocolate Whiskey and Beer Cupcakes” recipe as I liked the idea of the ganache filling. I substituted Baileys for the Irish Whiskey in the ganache since I had none on hand and didn’t want to pick up a small bottle for the few teaspoons. (Though, I’m sure I could have found some type of use for it!)

The results? P.D.G.—Pretty Darn Good! Seriously! I was a bit concerned that the Guinness would leave a bitter taste to the cuppie—as it usually leaves that flavor on my palette from just a sip. But the other ingredients must have mellowed that flavor out and instead, left a beautifully moist and flavorful end product. The ganache was fabulous too—and quite easy to make. Extremely rich and “truffle-like” in texture and flavor.My only critique was the frosting, although I may be bias as I typically prefer a cream cheese base. Although the Baileys was a great addition, I found the frosting too sweet–even by cutting the confectioner sugar amount in half. Next time, I’ll stick with the cream cheese base 🙂

Also, at the next go-around, I may add Baileys Mint Chocolate Cream liquor to the ganache and some mint extract to the cakes for a different spin. Mint Chocolate is one of my favorite combos 🙂

Overall–quite a knockout cupcake. Rest assured, I’ll definitely make this one again!!!

So to all my peeps out there –Wishing you a very Happy St. Patrick’s Day filled with luck and tasty cupcakes!

Measure out 1 Cup of Guinness–or your preferred Stout Beer

Bring to a simmer with 1 Cup of Unsalted Butter

Whisk in 3/4 Cup of Cocoa Powder

Line your cupcake pans with paper cups. I chose these cute green-striped greaseproof ones to add the festivities 🙂

Fill liners 3/4 filled with cupcake batter

Bake at 350 degrees. Mine took 19 minutes and were cooled on racks for 30 minutes.

Time to prep the ganache!

Chop up the 8 ounces of chocolate while waiting for the cream to simmer

Of course I added a bit of Baileys to the ganache 🙂

I used a cookie cutter to create a little “bed” for the ganache 🙂

I enlisted the help of a pairing knife to pop out the stubborn pieces 🙂

Using a Wilton #12 Round Tip, pipe ganache in the centers

Happy little Baileys Ganache filled cuppies

Pipe or Ice the cuppies with your Baileys Buttercream

I used a Wilton #4B Star tip for my swirls and added little shamrock sprinkles for extra luck 🙂

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Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes with Baileys Ganache
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Makes 20 to 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:

Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes
1 Cup Guinness Stout
1 Cup Unsalted Butter
¾ Cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder (I used Ghirardelli)
2 Cups All Purpose Flour
2 Cups Granulated Sugar
1½ Teaspoons Baking Soda
¾ Teaspoon Salt
2 Large Eggs
⅔ Cup Sour Cream

Ganache Filling
8 ounces Bittersweet Chocolate (I used Godiva)
⅔ Cup Heavy Cream
2 Tablespoons Butter, room temperature
1 to 2 Teaspoons Baileys Cream (optional)

Baileys Frosting
3 to 4 Cups Confections Sugar
½ Cup Unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 to 4 Tablespoons Baileys
1 Teaspoon of Green Food Coloring (optional)
**I doubled this recipe to make enough to pipe large swirls on the cupcakes.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 24 cupcake cups with liners.

Make the cupcakes: Put the butter with the beer in a sauce pan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Whisk in cocoa powder until smooth. Cool slightly.

Fill the cupcake liners about 2/3 of the way if you want flatter cupcakes and 3/4 if you want domed. Bake for about 17 minutes, or until a toothpick or a slim knife inserted into the middle of a cupcake comes out clean. Cool completely to room temperature.

Make the filling: Chop the chocolate and transfer it to a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream until simmering and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for one minute and then stir until smooth. Add the butter and whiskey (if you’re using it) and stir until combined.

Fill the cupcakes: Let the ganache cool until thick but still soft enough to be piped. Using your 1-inch round cookie cutter or an apple corer, cut the centers out of the cooled cupcakes. I went about half to 2/3 of the way down and used a small knife to help me extract the centers. Put the ganache into a piping bag with a wide tip and fill the holes in each cupcake to the top.

Make the frosting: In a large mixer bowl, whip the butter for several minutes until very light and fluffy. Slowly add the powdered sugar, letting it incorporate, until the butter becomes thicker and stiff (you will know when this happens). Slowly drizzle the Bailey’s (or milk or cream or a combination thereof) and whip until combined. Add green food coloring to desired hue. Ice and decorate the cupcakes.

Note: Smitten Kitchen gave a great tip about slowly adding the confectioner sugar to have a less grainy texture. It also required less sugar in the end. By sifting the sugar and using Smitten Kitchen’s suggestion, I ended up only using 4 cups of confectioner sugar for a double batch. That’s half than what was listed—and even then I felt it was a bit too sweet.

Sneak peak inside the cuppies. The Baileys Ganache was really yummy and tasted like Truffles!