Microwave Recipes: Two Minute Cupcakes

Happy Monday everyone! It's going to be a busy week ahead but for now we'll talk about the weekend that was. As you may have noticed, the blog has gone through some aesthetic changes (do you guys like it? I'm still on the fence). I'm kind of working the changes based on our new logo, care of Mr. Awesome.

Besides tinkering with the blog, the weekend also had me spending some time in the kitchen (surprise, surprise). Remember when I made those yummy, fudgy, microwave brownies? This time, I made something similar, but from scratch (woot woot)! It ended up like this-

Ain't that a thing of beauty?

My friend Jill (creator of the mouth-watering Chocolate Chip Cookie Surprise) sent over a recipe for quick and easy microwave mug cake. I used the recipe she sent over, but with a few modifications. Basically, I just upped each measurement because I think one egg is too much for such a small mixture.

Here's the recipe I used (my notes in parenthesis):

Microwave Mug Cake

• 4 tbsp flour (made it 5 tablespoons)
• 4 tbsp sugar (5 tbsps)
• 4 tbsp cocoa (I couldn't find cocoa powder so I used Ovaltine. Yes.)
• (a small pinch of salt)
• 1 egg
• 3 tbsp milk (4 tbsps)
• 3 tbsp oil (3 1/2 tbsps)
• 3 tbsp chocolate chips (4-5 tbsp, the more the merrier)
• a small splash of vanilla extract (I don't have this so I ticked it off the list)
• large coffee mugs
• (several large cupcake cups)

Instructions:

Add dry ingredients to a bowl and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the chocolate chips and mix again. Place cupcake cups inside the mugs (for form only), pour in the mixture until cupcake cup is about 3/4 filled (so there's room when it rises), and sprinkle some chocolate chips on top. Place the mugs inside the microwave and cook for 2-3 minutes on high.

I (a.k.a. kitchen noob) made these!

And as soon as you hear the bell on the oven, you're done! You now have freshly "baked" chocolate cupcakes ready for serving. Best eaten hot off the oven, or with ice cream, or with chocolate syrup (you know, from the Hershey's squeeze bottle you most likely have in your kitchen cupboard). 

The entire mixture is enough for 3 large cupcakes, if you want more, just double all the ingredients. They're so easy to make and perfect for those days you want a warm and gooey chocolate sweet treat but have only a few minutes to spare. (Next time, imma try mixing in Nutella!)

Name That Chocolate!

Here's a picture of twenty of the world's most famous chocolates unmarked. Can you name them all? To make things easier, we'll assign numbers to them. Left to right and then top to bottom. I'll try to guess too. Let's go!

1. ?
2. Snickers
3. Butterfinger
4. Butterfinger Crisp

5. ?
6. ?
7. ?
8. Cadbury Fruit & Nut

9. ?
10. 3 Musketeers
11. ?
12. Mars

13. ?
14. ?
15. Cadbury Caramel
16. ?

17. ?
18. ?
19. ?
20. ?

Okay. After about 15 minutes of Googling, I only guessed 7 out of 20! Geez. If you can help me name all of them correctly (answer via comments), I promise to give you one chocolate bar of your choice (that's available here of course).

A World Without Chocolate?

This just in: Gizmodo reports that the world is running out of chocolate! The article says- "According to the Cocoa Research Association, we're consuming more chocolate than we're producing cocoa." This is simply unacceptable! 

Why haven't the chocolate bigwigs ensured that this tragedy doesn't happen EVER? Hershey's, Cadbury, Ferrero, Nestle, Lindt, what have you done? Why is this happening?

"In 20 years chocolate will be like caviar. It will become so rare and so expensive that the average Joe just won't be able to afford it." 

This is very sad news. I, for one, cannot imagine a world where chocolate is something only the rich and famous can get on a regular basis. One of life's simple joys for me is walking to the nearest 7-11 after a particularly hormonal morning and getting a bar of Kit-Kat.

The good thing about this is that because the world is now aware of this near tragedy that's about to happen, we can take steps to ensure that it DOESN'T happen. Save mass-produced chocolate!

Baby Nomz for Halloween

We at BaconTunaMelt have been racking our brains for a good Halloween topic and for the longest time, we've been coming up with duds. Cliche though it may sound, inspiration came from this cute little sunflower who went "trick or treat"-ing at our office Halloween party.

This little cutie saved the day

There were dozens of adorable tots in costume last Friday, but this wee little one in a flower hooded onesie won my heart. Because of her, I've decided to indulge myself and make a happy little Halloween post with a list of the cutest food costumes for babies (what? baby pictures cheer me up).

My Top 10 Nommable BABIEZZZ!

"Give The Bitch Her Chocolate" is a Snarky Tabletopper

I was browsing through the on sale stack at National Bookstore last Sunday when I came across this little book of snark. "Give The Bitch Her Chocolate" is a compilation of nom-related quotes by ladies with an attitude. I loved it straightaway.

 

The tag line reads- "Eat. Drink. Bitch."
(Yes, I use a 101 Dalmatians bedsheet.)

The cover is a sturdy hard binding and the paper is thick with psychedelic designs on the other side of the text. It was gem of a find at just 99 pesos! Besides displaying a different quote per day on my desk, I would also use the pages to write notes for ladies who appreciate a healthy dose of sarcasm in their lives. Teehee~

How many cups do you drink in a day? Yes, you.

There are about fifty pages of colorful text and graphics. While some lines are corny, some have just the right amount of snarky kick. My favorites would have to be "Unattended children will be given espresso and a free kitten." which would be perfect to display in any establishment and this picture right here-

Oh so true

The description on the box pretty much sums up this quirky tabletop. It reads- "Give The Bitch Her Chocoloate is the ultimate gift for a favorite foodie, churlish chocoholic, or domestic dominatrix who believes bitchiness isn't just an attitude- it's a lifestyle." I approve.