Sinful ChocoHazeBerry Cupcake!

**My friend and Spelman Sister DyannaLynn from The High Life Suite is today's guest contributor! She whipped up this special Valentine's Day dessert JUST for Cooking With Whitney B! I hope that you all enjoy it. I can't WAIT to try it :)**

Happy Valentine's Day everybody!
Nothing says Valentine's Day like desserts and more specifically chocolate! Today, I have a sinfully delicious chocolate cupcake with hazelnut filling and chocolate icing, topped with white chocolate strawberry. Think that's a mouthful? You haven't seen anything yet!

What you need:
For the cupcakes

• 1 1/2 cups cake flour, sifted
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 tspn baking soda
• 1/2 tspn baking powder
• dash salt
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 stick of melted butter
• 3 oz melted unsweetened chocolates
• 2 eggs

Before starting, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Begin by combining your dry ingredients; the cake flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and the dash of salt. Set aside while you prep the remaining ingredients. I use a stand mixer, but you can also use a hand mixer and large mixing bowl. Add your melted butter, buttermilk tot he mixing bowl and mix on low. Turn the mixer up to medium and add in the 2 eggs. Now you can add in the melted unsweetened chocolate. Turn the mixer back to low and add in your dry ingredients; and allow the mixture to fully come together.



Prep your cupcake pans with liners and fill them 3/4 of the way full with the batter. Pop them in the oven and allow to cook for 18-20 minutes. Use a toothpick to test the center of the cupcakes in order to make sure they are done; the toothpick should come out clean when they are. Once they're done allow the cupcakes to fully cool before the next step.

I use a handy cupcake corer to remove a nickle sized plug from the cupcake(if you don't have one, don't worry, just use a sharp knife. Fill a plastic bag with your hazelnut spread of choice and snip the tip to form an opening just big enough to get a nice controlled flow. Fill each cupcake with a dollop of hazelnut spread.


For the Frosting

• 1 stick of softened butter
• 4 cups of powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup sifted cocoa
• 1/2 cup milk

Cream the stick of butter in the mixer, or with your hand mixer. Slowly add in the powdered sugar, then the cocoa, followed by the milk. The frosting should be nice and creamy but still have enough stiffness so that it won't run all over the place. If it seems to be too stiff, add a little more milk.

Now you're ready to frost! I use a piping bag and tip; however, it's just as easy to use a butter knife.

For the white chocolate dipped strawberries

• 1 bag of vanilla candy melts
• 1 carton of strawberries

Now it's time to top with the dipped strawberries. Wash and dry your strawberries and set aside. Melt the bag of candy melts using a small but deep pot on medium heat. Stir constantly to avoid sticking and/or burning. Slowly dip the strawberries in the melts and place on wax paper or non-stick foil. Place in the fridge until you're ready to top the cupcakes.

This recipe may sound like a lot, but I promise it's worth it! Once you try it, I promise you'll never buy a box cake or canned icing again :-) Happy baking! Remember to visit even more recipes as well as posts on fashion & DC living over at my blog, The High Life.

~ Dyanna

Chicken Stir-Fry!

In this hectic world we live in, every night cannot and will not be a "slave over the stove for hours" type of dinner. This meal was something that was thought of on a whim. My brother had a volleyball game which meant that we were going to get home late that evening. I had a bunch of errands that had to be run during the day and did not make it to the grocery store until after his game. I needed to cook something that wasn't going to take long and wasn't going to be too unhealthy since we were eating much later than normal. Because I knew what I was making beforehand, I was able to get in and out of the store in 15 minutes flat. The thing that held me up was deciding on using rice or noodles. Then I couldn't decide which type of noodle I wanted. I've heard about "glass noodles" before, but had never eaten then until this instance. Additionally, they were only 2 bucks, so it wasn't a big deal if they didn't work out. At any rate, it ended up being a success! I'll be using the noodles again!
Nom nom!

Ingredients:

• skinless and boneless chicken tenderlions
• steamable veggies
• stir-fry sauce
• saifun noodles (also known as fensi, chinese vermicelli, or glass noodles)
• black pepper
• crushed red pepper
• evoo
• slap ya mama or any type of cajun seasoning

Instructions:

In a large pot, bring 3 quarts of water to a boil. Once the water has reached its boiling point, remove from heat, add noodles, and cover with lid. The noodles soften as they sit in the hot water. While they are softening, wash and clean your chicken. Cut into bite-sized pieces and add to your pre-heated skillet. Add 2-4tbsps of evoo, depending on how much chicken you are cooking. With your skillet on medium heat, season your chicken with your peppers and cajun seasoning, if you have some. Once you start the chicken, place your bag of steamed veggies in the microwave. Brands differ with directions, so please be sure to follow your brand's directions accordingly. Once they have finished cooking, add your veggies to the skillet with your chicken, which should be done at this point. Lastly, add the stir-fry sauce. Poor as little or as much as you like. Some people like saucy foods...some don't. So you choose what you want! Cover and stir occasionally, on low, as the noodles finish cooking. 

Drain the water off the noodles. Make your base on your plate with them, then top with your chicken stir-fry. I totally get why the noodles are referred to as "glass noodles." They truly are see through and makes it appear as if your food is floating on your plate. Hope you enjoy! Be sure to comment!

This can also be made without meat and served as a vegetarian option!

Post Super Bowl Food Review!

The Super Bowl has come and gone! However, I wanted to share with you some of the pictures from the party I catered. Of course, I have to congratulate the Ravens on their win! What an awesome way for #70 Ramon Harewood to celebrate his birthday?! Besides a very exciting game, Beyonce's half-time show was AMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAZING!!! The announcement of her tour sent the internet and her fans into a total frenzy! But back to the matter at hand: the food! This was the first event I've ever catered and I truly enjoyed myself. I served an herb pesto pasta salad, Italian meatballs in a Rum based sauce, fried chicken, Jameson & Hennessy buffalo wings and Rotel dip. Additionally, I wanted to add a little fun to the party so I added a DIY cupcake station. I provided plain cupcakes, 3 types of icings (vanilla, lemon and cream cheese) and other decorations. People were able to decorate their cupcakes however they wanted. This is something that I will definitely be doing again!

~Whitney B.