October 28: National Chocolate Day

Hello readers,

Happy National Chocolate Day! :)

Well, for those living in the US that is. But who doesn't want to celebrate National Chocolate Day?! :D

A compilation of all chocolate dishes of the Cake Shop :D

The word "chocolate" originates from Nahuatl, which is the language of the Aztects. They used the word "xocolatl", which means bitter drink. Chocolate drinks date back to 1900 BC (!). People used to believe that if you drank this special "cocoa water", it would make you smarter :) Amazing right?

And yet, Europe didn't know about cocoa beans or the chocolate drinks until the 16th century. Spain brought the popular cocoa beans to Europe and even back then, chocolate proved to be very popular :) Many variations came, vanilla was added, everybody loved it. And now, we can't imagine a world without chocolate. I know I can't!

Ooohhh... <3

The process of picking cocoa beans to eating the chocolate we know takes a very very very long time! It needs to undergo fermentation, drying, cleaning, roasting, sifting, grinding, tempering *breathe in*.... It's a lot of work.

Who would've thought that you could do so many things with cocoa beans, back in 1900 BC? My favourite chocolate brands are Ferrero and Kinder. It's a shame that Kinder isn't allowed in the US, it's so good. I hope it will be allowed in shops some day :)

Personalised Nutella jar :D

Some fun facts about chocolate:
- The most expensive chocolate in the world costs € 2.000 per 500 grams; it's been kept in pure vanilla and truffle oil for 24 hours..
- Chocolate is mostly bought at Brussel Airport: over 80.000 kilos of chocolate a year
- People living in Switzerland eat more chocolate than anybody else in the world: 11,4 kilos a year per person
- Chocolate is a natural lip balm
- The world "cocoa tree" literally means "food of the gods"

Another fun fact from my own country: Holland is the only country in the world where the people eat their sandwiches with chocolate sprinkles. It's a legit breakfast thing, kids love it and adults (including yours truly!) eat it too :)

Nutella Cheesecake!

So, back to the title, I celebrated National Chocolate Day by making a quick chocolate cheese cake with: Nutella!

Very full flavour, very easy to make, and chocolate. Is that not enough reason to bake something good? I'll ask Santa for a Nutella recipe book this year I think.. :) Have a look on Pinterest for more Nutella chocolate recipes!

So good..! <3

It's a busy times for the Cake Shop. It's Halloween on Saturday, spooky cupcakes coming up. I have a photoshoot next Wednesday, as a part of the interview for the newsletter from work :) Making preperations for a new themed week..

Also, I am experimenting with gluten-free cupcakes, for the birthday of a special little girl <3 Full reports will follow. Any of you tried gluten-free cupcakes before?

Time to get back to work! See you soon readers :)

Enjoy National Chocolate Day :D

Love, Rebecca

Sunday in a nutshell

Hello readers!

Happy Sunday to you; I hope you had a nice Saturday :) The weather has been quite ok so far. Next week, the temperature will go up again in Holland. Up to 17-18 degrees Celsius they say! Feels a bit like spring in the middle of autumn.

Speaking of seasons: seasonal products are the best! There's pumpkin, pear, green beans, endive (Penny, the guinea, is very happy :)).. But also: nuts.

Nomnomnom!

My mom came home with a bunch of fresh walnuts last week. Walnuts are lovely; though it takes some strength before you can eat them ;) I visited a nice cooking store in The Hague and found a recipe for cake. This weekend's bake is based on a recipe by this store and contains a lot of nuts and banana.

Walnut-Banana cake, freshly made!

Looks good, doesn't it? It tastes very good with some Earl Grey tea :) The best thing about this cake is that it works on your five senses. You can actually see, smell, taste, feel and hear (when you take a bite) the nuts and bananas. It's so amazing, I just have to share this with you.

This is my version for a (big!) Walnut-Banana cake, based on this recipe:

125 gr. softened butter
150 gr. brown sugar
20 gr. vanilla sugar
2 large of 3 small eggs
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
3-4 very ripe bananas
100 gr. walnuts
20 gr. almonds
250 gr. self-rising flour (recipe on bottom of this post!)

long cake tin
handmixer
cake rack

Start by pre-heating the oven to 180 degrees (celsius) fan. Butter the cake tin and place a sheet of baking parchment in the tin.

I love the smell of chopped walnuts and almonds.. Even more when they're roasted!

Mash the bananas and chop up the walnuts and almonds. Leave them a bit chunky, it's nice to have a crunch when you take a bite!

Cream the butter, brown and vanilla sugar. This takes about 5 to 10 minutes. Add the almond extract and the eggs, one by one, and mix well. Add the mashed bananas and chopped nuts and self-rising flour and mix well.

Mix, mix, mix :)

Pour the cake mixture in the cake tin and leave it in the oven for approx. an hour. The cake is ready when it's golden brown and a bamboo skewer comes out clean. Leave it to cool in the tin for 5-10 minutes, then place it on the cake rack to cool completely.

And there you go! The cake tastes best when it's served luke warm. Whipped cream is a nice extra when serving :)

Lovely filled cake.. Can you see the chunks of nuts?

Few tips from Rebecca:
- Unless you're terribly afraid of getting salmonella, I can really recommend to always try the batter. It's the best way to taste if the flavour is strong enough.
- This recipe is great to bake if you want to get rid of left-over bananas in your fridge. Old or brown bananas are perfect for baking or mashing!
- If you don't have some ready-to-use self-rising flour, it's very easy to create this yourself! Take 250 gr. all-purpose flour, add 2,5 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Mix and voila! :)

It's almost Halloween, people! How are you going to celebrate it? Stay tuned, a special Halloween post is coming up next week :) until then, enjoy your weekend and see you soon! <3

I couldn't agree more :D

Love, Rebecca

TBT #5: Triple Chocolate Mousse

Hello readers!

This is Throwback Thursday number 5 already. Time flies when you're having fun! This week's TBT is a very special one. I'll start with a picture and share its story. 

Triple Chocolate Mousse.... hmmmm!

This mousse is from October 2013. I got the idea to create this mousse by a recipe for (here it comes): strawberry pudding. 

I know, very logical (not). I get that sometimes, I once made a cake, completely and solely based of a picture. Plus, I can't help my chocolate cravings.. :) And three kinds of chocolate triples the fun! I remember it tasted good but was very filling. Logical, with all that chocolate... 

Speaking of which, I have a request for you. I'm thinking of themes for the future themed weeks, but all ideas and suggestions are welcome :) Have you got a nice idea for future themed weeks? Please reply or email me at cakeshopbyrebecca@gmail.com . 

Have a lovely week readers! 

Libby says hi :)

Love, Rebecca

News news news!

Hello readers!

Thank you for your kind replies on Italy Week, I'm glad themed weeks are a success :) More will follow, for sure!

So. Today's post is about news. And all is good news: a little bird told some people about my Cake Shop!

Today, I was interviewed for the company news letter about my baking skills. It was my first interview ever, so very exciting. A lot of questions were asked; I will tell you more once the interview is in the newsletter. I still can't believe I was actually asked to be interviewed :)

During the next meeting, a photographer will take some live action pictures. Which means I will be baking and professional photos will be taken... SO EXCITING!!!!!! <3 

More news in another category: I have created social media accounts for the Cake Shop! Please find them here & share :) 

Facebook: Cake Shop by Rebecca

Pinterest: cakeshopbyR

Dutch pastry: oliebol!

Yesterday, when I was in the shopping center, I happened to see this: oliebollen! Foreigners will most likely not know this very traditional dutch snack. Oliebollen literally means "oil bolls", but is more known as "Dutch Doughnuts" :) They are a bit donut-like, I prefer mine with raisins. It is a very traditional Dutch snack, which is eaten on New Years Eve. Special snack cars open around October (or all year long when there's a fair!). I always bake them myself, so more info on New Years Eve :)

Inside of the oliebol: lots of raisins! Just how I like it :)

Also, I've started brainstorming for Halloween. You can expect a lot of creepy/cute sweets; will definitely do cupcakes! 

That's all for this time folks! Thank you for being my loyal readers, Bexx over and out :) 

Love, Rebecca