That which should never enter my house rides again

I blame Costco. After a near five year reprieve from membership at the warehouse mecca, TD and found ourselves wandering its (too busy for a Friday night) aisles. Wandering the aisles at Costco is never a good idea. I can’t remember what we went in for but am fairly certain the case of beer, apple chips, baby naans and two huge containers of Nutella were not on the original list.

There are only two things that I don’t trust myself to casually keep on hand. The first is Cheez-Its.The second, as I’ve mentioned in previous posts, is Nutella. Late on the night of the Costco trip I could hear the chocolate-hazelnut spread calling to me from the garage in little Italian voices accompanied by an accordian. I swear.

Something needed to be done with the Nutella…before I was done with it.

Cue the cupcakes. I started with a great basic vanilla and buttermilk cupcake recipe from Sunset Magazine. The recipe is simple and the resulting cupcakes have enough integrity (structurally speaking) to take on an inch or two of frosting.

Starting with my go-to buttercream recipe, I added a generous blob of Nutella. And then I added some more for good measure.

After a quick roll in chocolate jimmies, I had, what I thought was a pretty good misdirection for the serious error in judgement that was the purchase of Nutella. As a bonus, the cupcake recipe makes exactly 12 little cakes. So, I didn’t even have an excuse to try one since my carrying container holds one dozen and my own sense of social propriety didn’t want to explain what happened to the missing one.

Malted Vanilla Cupcakes with Nutella Buttercream Frosting

cake adapted from Sunset Magazine

For the Cake

Ingredients

6 TBS unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 C plus 2 TBS sugar
2 large eggs
1 TSP vanilla
2 C all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 C malted milk powder
2/3 C buttermilk at room temp.

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line pan with 12 cupcake wrappers.
Sift flour, baking powder, malted milk powder and salt into a medium bowl, set aside.
In a bowl, with a mixer on medium speed, beat butter and all the sugar until well blended.
Add eggs and vanilla and beat on high speed until well blended.
With mixer on low speed, beat about a third of the flour mixture into butter mixture, then about a third of the buttermilk. Repeat to beat in remaining flour mixture and buttermilk, alternating in thirds. When all the flour is incorporated, beat mixture on medium speed just until well blended.
Fill paper-lined or buttered muffin cups (1/3-cup capacity) about three-fourths full with batter (about 1/4 cup in each).
Bake in a 350° oven until tops spring back when lightly touched in the center, 20 to 25 minutes.
Cool on racks 5 minutes; remove from pans. Cool completely.

For the frosting

Ingredients

5 large egg whites
1 C plus 2 TBS sugar (superfine)
pinch of salt
12 ounces (3 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temp, cut into tablespoons
1 tsp cold espresso (optional)
3/4 C Nutella

Directions

In the heat-proof bowl of a stand-mixer, combine egg-whites, sugar and salt. Set over a pan of simmering water and whisk constantly by hand until the mixture is warm to the touch and the sugar has dissolved. The temp on an instant-read thermometer should read between 150-160 F.
Attach the bowl to the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Starting on low speed, and gradually increasing to medium-high speed, beat until the mixture is fluffy and glossy and completely cool (you can tell by touching the side of the bowl). Process will take about 10 minutes.
With mixer on medium-speed, add the butter a few tablespoons at-a-time, mixing well between each addition. At some point the frosting will start to look curdled. Don’t worry, just keep on going.
Switch to the paddle attachment. Add-in espresso and Nutella mixing on low until everything is combined.
Generously frost cupcakes.

Sometimes, a girl’s got to do what a girl’s got to do

Somebody asked me to name the one thing I can’t resist. This was at work and was posed by a colleague who could not believe that I don’t like doughnuts. It’s true. In the palate lottery I somehow escaped a taste for most breakfast related pastries–doughnuts, pancakes, waffles, french toast–all completely lost on me. TD thinks it’s un-American. I’m just thankful that there is one category of “sugar and fried” I don’t love (carrot cake rounds out the list of not-likes if anyone is keeping track).

My answer to the question? Nutella. I probably hadn’t thought of the stuff in months. Of course then, it was ALL I could think about. I think I’ve mentioned before that in a pantry filled with baking supplies (there are at least a couple of pounds of chocolate in there at all times), the only thing I can’t keep on-hand is nutella.

Truth be told, a jar of that chocolate hazelnut manna, a spoon and a cup of strong coffee would have scratched my co-worker induced itch.

However, that would have been embarrassing. So I threw in some crispy rice as to appear more respectable.

Why the “c” and not the “k” in crispy? Two reasons. First, it really chaps my hide when words are purposefully misspelled for marketing reasons. So much so that I refuse to patronize, purchase or consume the misspelled entity. Reason number two? I’m cheap and used generic crisped rice. So, my treats were literally “rice crispied.”

If you like this, you might like these

Devil’s Food Hazelnut Crunch Cake

Bella Bars

Nutella Rice Crispy Treats

adapted from the original Rice Krispys Treats recipe

speaking of Kelloggs, if you haven’t seen the Drunk History version of the famous familial fued…you’re missing out

Ingredients

3 TBS butter
1 1/2 C nutella
4 C miniature marshmallos
6 C crispy rice cereal (I used generic hence the “c” instead of the “k”
1 C chopped, toasted hazelnuts if desired.

Directions

Grease or butter a 9X13 baking pan
In a large saucepan, melt together butter and 1 cup of nutella over low heat.
Add in the marhsmallows and stir until combined and melted.
Add in rice crispies and nuts and mix.
Using a buttered/greased spatula (and clean fingers if you can stand the heat), evenly press mixture into prepared pan.
Melt remaining 1/2 C of nutella. Spread evenly over pressed treats.
Allow to cool and cut.

Devil’s Food with Hazelnut Crunch Cake

Just in case you’ve forgotten, here is where we last left off:

Inspiration for recipes on The Misanthropic Hostess come from all over the place. Sometimes I’m attracted to a new idea, ingredients or technique I haven’t worked with. Other posts are inspired by memorable meals and childhood favorites. And then, sometimes, I try a recipe for this singular reason: get in my belly! This is one of those recipes. Bon Appetit has this new thing going on where they offer additional recipes via mobile/tablet interface that don’t appear in the print magazine or, as far as I’ve seen, Epicurious. They show you the picture and then send you to the mobile. Such a tease. Anyhow, this is one of those recipes.

Who doesn’t love chocolate and coffee together?

A single recipe makes three eight-inch cakes.

The crumb is pretty fine and loose. If you are going whole-hog and decide to frost these babies, I suggest freezing them first.

While I liked the frosting included in this recipe, I still haven’t found the perfect chocolate frosting. Good thing I like research.

Here is what makes this recipe special. That hazelnut crunch pictured above? It finds its way into each layer of the cake. It’s like a little crunchy Nutella surprise!

Remember to leave some for the top.

Now, who needs a glass of milk?

The only suggestion I have is to maybe chop the hazelnut crunch to a finer grain for the middle cake layers. As you can see from the piece below, the generous chunks sort of got in the way of the layer-flow.

This is a great special occasion cake indeed! And no TD, no peppercorns.

If you like this, you might like these

Chocolate Love Cake

Chewy Chocolate Cookies

Soundtrack

I discovered this new dude name Phillip Phillips. Guess who doesn’t watch American Idol?

Devil’s Food Cake with Hazelnut Crunch

Bon Appetit, September 2012

Devil’s Food Cake

Ingredients

2 1/3 C cake flour
1 C unsweetened cocoa powder (I use Vahlrona)
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
2 tsp instant espresso powder
1 C hot coffee
1 C buttermilk
2 1/2 C sugar
1 C (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temp
4 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
4 oz semi-or-bittersweet chocolate, melted, cooled slightly

Directions

Grease 3 8″ cake pans, line bottoms with parchment.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Sift cake flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt and baking powder into a medium bowl.
In a separate bowl (better yet, if you have it, use a multi-cup pyrex liquid measuring cup), dissolve espresso into hot coffee, whisk-in buttermilk, set aside.
In a stand mixer (or with an electric mixer), beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy (5ish minutes), scraping-down bowl as needed. Add eggs one-at-a-time, beating in between additions. Beat in egg yolk and vanilla. Beat on high speed until doubled in volume and very fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape bottom of bowl well making sure all ingredients are incorporated. Beat 1 more minute.
With mixer on low, beat in flour and coffee mixtures in alternating pattern, starting and ending with flour.
Divide evenly among pans.
Bake until tester inserted into center comes out clean (about 20 minutes). Transfer to wire racks, let cake cool in pans for 30 minutes.
Invert cakes onto racks, peel off parchment and let cool completely. I like to do this step in advance, wrap each cake tightly in plastic wrap and then freeze. These cakes will be much easier if frosted while frozen.

Frosting

Ingredients

8 oz milk chocolate, chopped
8 oz semi-or-bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 1/2 TBS light corn syrup
1 1/2 C heavy cream
1 C (2 sticks) chilled, unsalted butter, cut into 1/2″ pieces.

Directions

Combine both chocolates and corn syrup in medium bowl.
Bring cream to barely a boil in a small saucepan; pour over chocolate mixture. Let sit for 2 minutes. Whisk until chocolate is melted and mixture is completely combined.
Using a standing or electric mixer, beat chocolate mixture until cool, 5-6 minutes.
Add-in butter a few pieces at a time, beating until incorporated between additions. Continue to beat until thick and lightened in color (between 5-15 minutes). If kitchen is hot or frosting feels thin, refrigerate.

Hazelnut Crunch

Hazelnut crunch

Assembly

Level-off cakes using a serrated knife. Place 1 cake layer on a large plate or stand.
Using an offset spatula, spread about 1 cup frosting on bottom layer. Spring 1/2 cup hazelnut crunch over frosting. Place second layer over crunch. Repeat.
Top third layer with frosting and decorate as desired. Finish with hazelnut crunch.
Chill until frosting is set (3-4 hours).

Can’t…stop…crunching

I’m going to admit up front that I’m stretching what could be a single post into two. But really, this first part should stand alone. And, since Septemberish appears to have become the month of crunches (rainbow and cinnamon toast crunch crunch), why stop now?

We begin with good quality bittersweet chocolate. And while it is gently melting with some butter, go ahead and bust out the…

Nutella.

Oh that’s right, I went there. Nutella has made several appearances on this blog. In fact, Nutella is to the Misanthropic Hostess what is Alec Baldwin is to hosting SNL; always a really good idea (the same could be said of Steve Martin and Christopher Walken).

Do you want to hear a confession? Nutella is the singular foodstuff not allowed in our house on a casual basis. I have pounds of varying varieties of chocolate stored in the pantry and at least three kinds of peanut butter in there as well. No problemo. However, introduce this little elliptical tub of chocolate hazelnut manna into our household and I swear, I can hear it whispering to me while I’m at work. So, sadly, I’ve learned that I can only buy it when I have an immediate use for it.

Once the chocolate and butter are melted and combined, the nutella is added and the whole mess is whisked until smooth.

And here is where the crunch comes in.

Once the crispy rice is incorporated everything goes into the freezer for a pause. Then, break the mass into smaller pieces and let your imagination run wild. On top of ice cream? Yes! Yogurt? Yup! As a fancy add-in to granola? You betcha!

My only suggestion is that you store the crunch in a sealed zip-lock in the fridge or freezer. The recipe doesn’t include any stabilizers and so the melt-point is very low (read: if you store it in the pantry and think you’re going to be able to sneak bites here and there, think again, your chocolately fingertips will give you away).

While all the suggestions for use provided above are equally tantalizing, I had other plans for this crunch. Here is a hint.

If you like this, you might like these

Nutella Cookies

The Bella Bar

Soundtrack

Give this young lady a listen:

L.A. Girlfriend

Hazelnut Crunch

Bon Appetit, September 2012

Ingredients

1/4 C hazelnuts
2 oz (about 1/3 C) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate
2 TBS (1/4 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 C Nutella
3 C toasted rice cereal

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line baking pan or a dish that will fit in your freezer with parchment.
Spread hazelnuts out on sheet pan and toast until fragrant (6-8 minutes).
Coursely chop nuts, set aside to let cool.
Add chocolate and butter to medium heatproof bowl (or smaller heatproof pan). Set over large saucepan of simmering water. Heat mixture stirring often until butter and chocolate are melted and smooth.
Remove bowl or smaller pan from over larger saucepan. Stir-in Nutella and then hazelnuts. Fold-in rice cereal.
Spread mixture into prepared parchment lined pan or dish, freeze until set, about 30 minutes.
When set, break into smaller pieces with hands. Crunch can be made in advance and store in the freezer in a airtight container.
Try not to eat it all before using it on or with something.

The Bella Bar

You are going to wish I didn’t post this. Even with the last of them dispersed to hungry college students and absolutely not-a-one left for my own consumption, I regret that I’m posting this. Because thinking about them just makes me sad that they are all gone. It makes me want to make more. Which I won’t. At least not tonight.

Remember the Flying Hills Elementary School Bars of Excellence? Well. I did something very naughty to them. Very bad indeed.

I’ll give you a clue. It started with this:

And then this happened:

Which, who are we kidding, was just the gateway to this:

And resulted in this:

And of course, this:

Bad, BAD Nutella!

But why call it the Bella Bar you ask? You may remember a character from some of the way-back posts who went by the nickname ‘Petting Zoo.‘ She earned a reputation for chewing on gingerbread and coconut flakes. She was even featured in a certain Alumni Magazine for her misdeeds. Well, when she isn’t terrorizing baked goods, Petting Zoo goes by the alias ‘Bella.’

In addition to gnawing on inappropriate foodstuffs, Bella does imitations. Here she is doing Lindsey Lohan.

Bella the Cat is the Kitchen God’s occasionally better behaved sister. The markings on her fur also look suspiciously like the pattern created when peanut butter and Nutella mate. The Bella Bar is their love child.