The Chef's Favourites Series : Chocolate Mocha Cupcake with Mocha Cream Frosting - A Guest Post by Vineetha

I welcome all of you to The Chef's Favourites guest post for the month of March. This is a monthly guest post series where I invite some of my blogger friends to share with us one of their favourite recipes . They will also answer some simple questions so that we can know more about them :). If you missed the previous guest posts, do check them out here. 

The Chef for this month is Vineetha of Ruchi. Thanks to blogging which has given me a few good friends, maybe they are miles apart, but we share a special friendship which I would cherish all the time. Vineetha is one such blogger friend who has become a very close friend of mine :). Our friendship started when we learnt that we have a friend in common and we quickly became friends. Now we talk regularly about so many things especially about our kids :). She has a wonderful space Ruchi with so many lovely recipes. What I like about her posts are her short scribbles which she writes straight from the heart, simple clicks and explanations. She is a talented cook and I love all her recipes especially the cake recipes. Please do visit her space to check out yummy recipes. Thanks a lot dear for accepting my request to do this guest post :)

Chef Vineetha of Ruchi is sharing with us one of her favourite recipes, Chocolate Mocha Cupcake with Mocha Cream Frosting...sounds yummy rt? :)

Thanks Vineetha for such a lovely guest post :) Please accept the below award as a token of Thanks dear :)

Over to Chef Vineetha now........

Blogging world has gifted me a handful of good friends and Sobha is one among them. Our friendship grew through comment columns in our blogs and later on through Facebook, we talked a lot in Facebook about blogging, cooking etc and of course about our lil ones too...She is a good cook who always comes up with good foods and  she has chosen an apt  name for her blog !! I myself has tried one of her muffin recipe and it was so good, I still like to try out few more recipes from her and  in days/months to come I will be trying her recipes again.

It was on my birthday in February I got this mail from Sobha asking me whether I am intersted in doing a guest post in her space. I didnt even have to think twice before grabbing the wonderful opportunity and I considered her request as a special birthday gift from the blogging world :)

About me...

I am a Mum and a home maker. I believe that  Family and Friends are the most important thing in the world, not even a single day of mine goes without talking to my family or  atleast one of my  friends.

I have got a wonderful cook at my home, its none other than my hubby. I love  to eat what he cooks  ! One more budding cook is growing up in my home, its my 3 1/2 year old son who loves to watch me cook and bake. He has his own pots and pans and whenever I cook he too will be cooking with his pots and pans. Now he wants to help me with cooking too which I find a bit annoying. When I bake he never leaves the kitchen until the cake is out from the oven. Now I involve him in baking too and allow him to put measured ingredients on the mixing bowl, putting sprinkles on icing etc !!

Favourite Recipe here @ Good Food

All her recipes are delicious but since I have tried her Eggless Oats Banana Muffins and loved it I will go for  that one now :)

Favourite Cook Book

I dont really have any fav cook book but I have a recipe book which I  scribble when I see good  recipes in  TV's, cook books, magazines, blogs etc. The book is now almost 6 years old and is  very precious to me.

Favourite Chef

I love vah reh vah chef Sanjay, I have tried so many recipes from him and it never lets me down .

Favourite Spice

Pepper, its a universal spice and goes well with all the cuisines :)

Favourite Restaurant 

My favourite restaurant  is Northern Frontier  in Pune. I used to love eating out there.

Favourite Cuisine

Without doubt its Indian, apart from Indian I love Chinese, Thai, Italian and now Korean too (new found love).

Favourite Food Show

Its Taste of Kerala which comes in Amrita TV and Magic Oven in Kairali TV. Miss watching both the shows here :(

Favourite Recipe

I love cakes and chocolate cakes has been my favourite cake while growing up. I simply loved the idea of coffee in chocolate cake and thats how I tried this.

Here goes the Recipe of Chocolate Mocha cup cake with Mocha cream icing.

Chocolate Mocha Cup Cake with Mocha Cream Frosting 

Ingredients 

Flour - 1 1/4 cup
Cocoa powder - 1/4 cup
Sugar - 1 cup
Eggs - 2
Oil - 3/4 cup
Coffee powder - 1 tbs
Hot water - 3 tbs
Milk - 1/4 cup
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Baking soda - 1/4 tsp
Vanilla extract - 1 tsp
Salt - a pinch

For Frosting
Butter unsalted - 1/2 cup
Icing sugar - 1 cup
Coffee powder - 1/2 tsp
Cocoa powder -1/2 tsp
Warm water - 2 tbs

Preparation 

In a bowl sift flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt .
Cream egg and sugar.
Add oil and mix well.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture  and fold in until it is incorporated.
Finally add milk and mix well.
Bake it in a preheated oven at 175 degree centrigrade for 25 minutes or until a tooth pick comes out clean.

For Frosting
Beat the butter and add sugar little by little until all of the sugar is used up.
Dissolve cocoa powder and coffee powder in warm water and add it to the icing mixture and beat till it is mixed well.
Transfer the icing to a piping bag and decorate the cupcake as u wish :)

My Cooking Tip / Advice / Quote

I dont think I am professional enough to give cooking tips, so I will share a basic tip I know.
If you add a pinch of salt while sauting onions it will speed up the process and you will get your onions sauted quicker :)