Easter Egg Cakes Made Right In The Shells!

I'm always looking for recipes that are out of the box so to speak.  So when I read the post from the Cupcake Project and Delicious Days on how they made Cake Eggs right in the shells of a real egg I thought this was something I needed to attempt. 

It was really quite simple, just a little time consuming, but the results were well worth it, fun and a fantastic surprise for the Easter table!

Before starting this baking project I had every intention of stuffing the cakes once done with lemon curd.  However, I realized once they were cooked there was no way I wanted to tackle that.  The cake eggs were so light and fluffy that I stood the chance of ruining them.  So instead I figured I could plate them with drizzles of lemon curd all around the egg cakes by using a squirt bottle or place each individual cake in a ceramic egg holder.

I decided I'd use Stef's recipe from the Cupcake Project for my first run, but instead of using the sour cream I used plain yogurt. They turned out delicious!  Let me walk you through the steps of how these were done.  I'm sure you'll probably have all or most of the ingredients already in your pantry.

Easter Egg Cakes
makes 10 large egg cakes

Ingredients:

• 10 large eggs - however, you'll only be using one egg for the cake batter.  (Save the rest and make a great Fritatta for brunch).
• 1/2 cup all-purpose unbleached flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• large pinch of kosher salt
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1/2 teaspoon Pure Lemon Extract
• 1/4 cup plain yogurt

Prepping the eggs:

Using a pin or tip of a corkscrew, carefully poke a small hole in the base (larger end) of the egg.

Then carefully peel away about a 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch circle of the shell and thin film below the shell.  Turn the egg over a bowl and remove the entire egg from the shell.  To remove the remaining egg I used a round popsicle stick to carefully help scoop out the contents.  Do this same thing with the rest of the eggs. 

At this point rinse the insides of the eggs carefully with a slow steady stream of water over the sink.   Then place the rinsed eggs into a bowl of salt water.  I used about 1/4 cup of Kosher salt and then enough water to cover the eggs.  Be careful when submerging the eggs into the water so the shells don't break.  Leave them to soak for 30 minutes.

Rinse the eggs and lay on a paper towel to drain with the holes setting directly on the towel to dry out.

Directions for making the cake batter:

• In a small bowl mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Set aside.
• In a large bowl, mix one egg and the sugar until blended and smooth.
• Add the butter and lemon extract and mix until thoroughly combined.
• Add the plain yogurt and blend until smooth.

Using some non-stick spray carefully place the nozzle into the hole of each egg and spray.  Carefully swirl the egg around so that the non-stick contents cover the insides of the egg.

Set a popover pan (which I used) or cupcake pan (which would need a base of aluminum foil set into each cup to help the eggs stand upright) in front of you on the counter. 

Place the cake batter into a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip or you can use a plastic baggie.  Make sure that the tip will fit into the hole of the egg.  Gently fill each egg approximately 3/4 full.  If you don't fill enough your cake won't look like an egg.  I filled all of mine 3/4 -7/8 full. Remember the batter will expand.  If some of the batter spills out of the egg, don't worry you can easily clean it up and nibble on the scraps.  You can then clean the egg with a damp paper towel.

Bake the eggs in the pan at 350F for about 23-25 minutes. 

Let cool completely before peeling the eggs.  However, if you prefer you can also serve them directly in the shell and let your guests peel their own.

These are great served with lemon curd. As I mentioned, I had fully intended to stuff these with the lemon curd but they came out so light and fluffy that I was afraid I would ruin the cake eggs so didn't bother.

These are fun to make and I am sure your kids will enjoy it as well.  Just make sure they handle the eggs very carefully so they don't break them. 

Have fun making these and have a very Happy Easter!

Easter Bunny Cupcakes

First of all Happy Passover to those of you celebrating the first night of Passover this evening and all week. I hope you have a wonderful Sedar filled with lots of love and great food.

Last April 9th, 2009 I prepared some Easter Bunny Cupcakes on Great Day St. Louis. In case you weren't able to view that clip or would like to make the cupcakes this year I have attached the recipe, photo and video for you.

With Easter coming up this Sunday I thought this could be a fun project to do with the kids. I hope you enjoy it. To view the video please click on the arrow.



Bunny Cupcakes

What you will need:

Cake: 12 cupcakes (can use whatever recipe you like or a box mix if wanting to save time)

Icing: recipe for Chocolate Glaze below

Decoration: 1/4 cup white confectioners coating(pink candy color) and 1/2 cup white confectioners coating to make ears, eyes, smile, cheeks and whiskers;
1 1/2 cups of white nonpareils (all online at kitchenkrafts.com or at Michael's Craft Stores or Sallie’s on Manchester Road)

Miscellaneous: one 12-mold muffin pan, pastry cones, bunny ear templates, parchment paper

How to do:

1. Bake the cupcakes and let them cool completely. Freeze for 1 hour to overnight.
2. Prepare the glaze.
3. Melt the ½ cup confectioners coating for outside of ears and ¼ cup confectioners coating(to be colored pink) for inside of ears, separately. (this can be done in the microwave for 30 seconds, then check if needed for 15-30 more seconds by stirring)

Pour the ½ cup white confectioners coating (cc) into a pastry cone then blend the ¼ cup of melted white cc with pink candy color for the insides of the ears. Keep the cc warm on a heating pad or a pan placed over a hot water bath, since they will be needed in various steps throughout the directions.

4. Place the bunny ear templates that you have drawn on a sheet of parchment on a sheet pan or counter and tape down. Lay another sheet of parchment paper or cellophane on top. Lightly secure the parchment paper with one or two pieces of tape. Using the templates as a guide, pipe out 12 sets of white cc exterior bunny ears. For added impact, pipe the center with the pink cc. Set aside to harden. Don’t make these too thin or when you remove them they will break. Remove gently with offset spatula.

5. Glaze the cupcakes.

Take the cupcakes out of the freezer - just a few at a time so they do not sweat. Hold the cupcake firmly by the paper liner and invert it into the pot of melted glaze. Submerge the cupcake just up to the paper line and move it about to insure the entire surface is covered. Pull the cupcake straight up and gently spin it above the bowl by rotating your wrist, to allow any excess glaze to drip off. Flip the cupcake and carefully place it on a wire rack to set. Allow the glaze to set for 3 to 5 minutes at room temperature.

6. Pour the nonpareils into a small bowl. Carefully dip entire cupcake or three quarters of the cupcake into the nonpareils, depending on the look you are trying to create. If only dipping ¾ of the cupcake into the nonpareils, try to create a straight edge where the glaze and nonpareils meet. The glaze will act as the bunnies head.

7. Pipe 2 white dots for the eyes (or use ½ white jelly bean for each) and dot with pink for eyes. To pipe a dot, hold the chocolate pastry cone perpendicular to the surface of the cupcake. Keeping the tip stationary, squeeze and hold in place until the dot is the desired size. Release pressure and pull straight up.

8. Pipe a pink nose, white cheeks if you like and a little pink heart for the mouth. Then use the pink confectioners coating to pipe whiskers.

9. Use the tip of a knife to score the cake where the ears will be inserted. Press the ears gently halfway into each cupcake.

10. For fullest flavor, serve the cakes at room temperature.

Chocolate Glaze
Makes 2 ¾ cups

This glaze covers cakes smoothly and beautifully and is an absolutely delicious chocolate icing. The icing can be made with semisweet or milk chocolate; the semisweet has a darker, richer glow.

The icing can be used immediately or cooled and stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. Reheat slowly in a double boiler before using if chilled. This recipe can be doubled.

In a double boiler or in a medium metal bowl placed over a hot-water bath, melt:
• ¾ pound semisweet chocolate or milk chocolate (can use bag of choc. chips)

In a small saucepan, heat over medium-high heat:
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
• ¼ cup light corn syrup Stir until the butter melts, then continue to heat to just before the boiling point (bubbles will form around the pan’s rim).

Slowly pour the scalded liquid over the melted chocolate, whisking constantly until smooth. Strain the icing through a fine sieve.

How to make a pastry cone

You can make them out of cellophane, wax paper, or parchment paper.

If using parchment paper, to start, roll your parchment paper out. You want to get a perfect square, and actually you’re going to cut that square right in half to make a triangle.

One trick is to just fold one edge up until it meets the top edge, then crease it, and then cut along the outside or unfolded edge. Now open it up, and you’re going to use the crease that was formed when you folded the parchment as a guideline to cut your triangle out.

Now it’s time to form the cone.

Draw a line right in the middle of the longest side of the triangle. And that’s where your point is going to form. To do this, take one corner, and roll it in on itself, so that the corner lines up at the point of the triangle. Wrap the other side around to the back, and you’ll see that the two sides will line up right down the middle.

Now you want to tape, and wrap it around the tip. This will prevent the bag from opening while you’re squeezing it. So there’s your pastry cone.

To fill it, hold it in your hand, take a spatula, put some frosting on it, and place it slowly into the bag. Then, pinch your fingers down on it and slide the spatula out. Now, fold the edges down, and you have your pastry cone.

You can cut a small hole, or even a large hole depending on what kind of piping you’re doing. You can always use a zip lock bag as well to put your icing in and then cut a hole in one tip to pipe.

I hope you have fun making the cupcakes. As with any recipe, make sure prior to starting that you have all of your ingredients in place. This is called Mise en Place.

HAPPY PASSOVER & HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE!

Easter Treats

On Thursday, April 9th, 2009, Great Day St Louis aired the second segment of my Easter & Passover recipes. This time I created a bunny cupcake that I am sure the kids will love.

I hope that you enjoy the video segment.

http://www.kmov.com/greatday/video/?nvid=350461&shu=1

Wishing all of you a very Happy Easter & Passover!