Let's Go To The Circus! A Cupcake Design

At 28 years old, I had never (as far as I could remember) been to a circus. So my husband took me to the one that was in town this week and I had a blast! All the performers were incredible acrobats, and the clown was very sweet.

I was inspired by my time at the circus to make these cute themed cupcakes! Chocolate cakes with a mildly peanutty buttercream, topped off with a mini candy floss!

I know that circuses don't have animals anymore, but I still associate elephants and camels and that old timey sense of wonder at amazing spectacles! And because of elephants, I thought of peanuts.... thus peanut butter. Also, while at the circus I had some candy floss; yumyum!

INGREDIENTS

12 chocolate cupcakes, in pink or blue cases

6 ounces (170 grammes) salted butter

3 fluid ounces (105 millilitres) condensed milk

3 ounces (85 grammes) smooth peanut butter

12 ounces (340 grammes) icing sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

A few drops of almond essence

6 paper straws with pink stripes

A tub of candy floss, pink and blue

Pink and blue sprinkles

METHOD

• Make a buttercream icing with the butter, condensed milk, peanut butter, icing sugar, vanilla and almond essences. 
• Use the icing to pipe swirls on top of the cakes, and sprinkle with the blue and pink sprinkles.
• Cut the straws in half and use each half as a stick for the candy flosses: wrap pieces of candy floss around the straws and gently squeeze to secure. Keep the candy flosses in an airtight container until serving.
• Decorate the cakes with the mini candy flosses immediately before serving, not in advance, otherwise the candy flosses will melt.

Peanut Butter Cup Mini Cheesecakes (Wheat Free)

Beannachtaí na féile Oíche Shamhna, gach duine! In other words, happy Halloween! I hope everyone has or is having a fantastic day, and that my recent spate of Halloween related recipes has you well prepared for feasting. And here's another one!

Yes, I'm still on my cheesecake buzz. After the success of the previous two mini cheesecake posts, why wouldn't I be? So here's my most recent offering: peanut butter cup cheesecakes.

The inspiration behind this one I'm sure is fairly obvious: more Halloweeny peanutty goodness, with an American style twist, It followed from the coconut lime cheesecakes because I wanted to see if the recipe still worked if I replaced the coconut milk with smooth peanut butter; I was not disappointed.

One must understand, my brain works in a fairly non-linear fashion. I constantly imagine better and different ways of doing recipes, and invent new possibilities in my mind on a minute to minute basis. When I make one thing, it doesn't stop with the final product; it spurs my mind into imagine new things, usually starting with the though "hang on, what would happen if I....?"

But enough of my ramblings. To make these, I simply made a shortbread style base my mixing 2 ounces (55 grammes) of icing sugar, 4 ounces (115 grammes) of butter, 4 ounces (115 grammes) of spelt flour, 3 tablespoons (45 millilitres) of cornflour, and 1 tablespoon (15 grammes) of cocoa powder together with a pinch of salt until you achieve a crumbly dough. Line a 12 indent muffin tin with cases and divide the crumble between, flattening down and spreading slightly up the sides. Bake in a preheated 150°C (300°F, Gas Mk.2, or very moderate) oven for 15 minutes.

Prepare the filling following this recipe, replacing the coconut milk with smooth peanut butter, and the lime zest and juice with 4 fluid ounces (120 millilitres) of whipping cream. Distribute between the baked bases, and return to the oven for a further 20 minutes. Allow to cool and then chill overnight.

The next day, make the chocolate glaze by melting together 4 ounces (115 grammes) of milk or dark chocolate, 1.5 ounces (40 grammes) sunflower oil, and 1.5 ounces (40 grammes) of butter with a pinch of salt. Pour on the cases, moving the cakes to evenly spread the glaze, and then tap on the work surface to smooth out and release any bubbles. Decorate with bashed roasted salted peanuts.

The consistency of these cheesecakes is absolutely perfect: super creamy yet not too dense. The peanut flavour is nice and subtle, and complimented well by the chocolate base and glaze. There is also a nice combination of textures with the creamy cheesecake and glaze, crumbly base, and crunchy peanut topping.

You could of course use crunchy peanut butter if you want more crunch, but I'm not a fan of crunchy peanut butter. I'm sure this could work just as well with any kind of nut butter, such as almond or hazelnut.

There was no recipe this time last year.

Peanut Butter Fudge (Naturally Gluten-Free)

Here in Ireland and the UK, peanut butter is something you put in the sandwiches of school children, or eat by the spoonful if you're trying to body-build, however in the United States of America, it seems like a national institution. People here would never really think of it as something to put in or around sweets, due to its use as a savoury sandwich filling, and the only homegrown sweetie on would find peanut butter in is a Peanut Butter KitKat, and I think that was only invented in repsonse to the influx of American sweeties, particularly Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

I'd never seen a Reese's cup until I was i my late teens, and I remember a few of my American college mates waxing lyrical about the fact that Ireland had started importing 'real candy' (and I resisted the urge to tell them that all this time they could've been making them at home with great ease using chocolate bars, peanut butter, normal butter, icing sugar and paper cake cases)

Now however, I have leapt onto the peanut butter sweetie bandwagon and uploaded my own version of the Usonian classic: Peanut Butter Fudge. Unlike most recipes on the internet, this version doesn't need (the abomnible invention that is-) Marshmallow Creme or white chocolate chips, it just needs five ingredients that are commonly found in an Irish or British kitchen.

INGREDIMENTS

This is a large quantity that will make about 1¼ pounds (570 grammes) of fudge, but I've found it can be easily halved or even quartered. Just be really careful when making small batches because it can burn or crystallise easily.

• 12 ounces (340 grammes) light brown sugar
• 3½ fluid ounces (100 millilitres) cream
• 3½ fluid ounces (100 millilitres) milk
• 3½ ounces (100 grammes) butter
• 3 ounces (85 grammes) smooth peanut butter
• Optional: 1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) of vanilla essence

HOW-TO

• Prepare an 8 inch (20 centimeter) square tin by either greasing it lightly or lining it with non-stick baking paper. You could also use a silicone baking tin, which needs no greasing or lining.
• In a heavy-based large saucepan, heat the cream, milk and butter until the butter has melted.
• Pour the sugar into the middle of the pan so that it forms a little mountain in the middle, then gently bring in the milk mixture from the edges. Your aim here is to get as little sugar as possible on the edges of the pan, as this can cause your fudge to go grainy.
• Stir the mixture over medium-low heat until the sugar has completely dissolved. Using a pastry brush dipped in hot water, wash the sugar crystals from the side of the pan. Alternatively, you can just pop the lid on the pan for a minute to allow the steam to wash it all away instead.
• Once the sugar has dissolved and there is no evidence of sugar crystals left, bring the mixture to the boil and once boiling clip a sugar thermometre to the side of the pan. Cook over medium-high heat until the whole thing reaches 118°C (245°F). Please don't stir!
• While the fudge is cooking, fill your sink or wash basin with about 2 inches (5 centimetres) of cold water.
• Once the fudge has reached temperature, take the pan from the heat and dip the bottom in the cold water to stop cooking immediately. 
• Add the peanut butter to the mixture, then leave the mixture to cool for 12 minutes (a minute per ounce (28 grammes) of sugar).
• Add the vanilla essence and beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until thick, creamy and opaque. The mixture will slightly lose its shine and become more matte, and the consistency will be like freshly made Mr Whippy soft serve ice-cream. 
• Pour into your prepared tin and allow to cool at room temperature for at least 6 hours or overnight.

Do not even think of setting it in the fridge: you can store it in the fridge once set, but setting the fudge in the fridge will cause crystallisation. Store in an air tight container to avoid it catching any unwanted odours or flavours.