Tres leches cupcakes

This Christmas past, one of my Facebook friends shared a picture of some tres leches cupcakes he had made with his family. I was intrigued, since I have (just) enough Spanish to figure out that 'tres leches' translates to 'three milks'. He told me a bit about them and I decided they weren't a million miles away from the very first recipe I shared on this blog. They sounded rather decadent and sweet enough to meet the approval of my sugar-mad husband and sons.

So I found a recipe and gave them a whirl. They aren't difficult, but they are a bit of a faff, so don't try them if you're in a hurry.

They were utterly delicious, very sweet, and com-puh-letely decadent. Dieters need not apply. Fortunately for those of you who care about these things, there is still nearly a month before the beginning of Lent! Oh... and also not suitable for those with a dairy intolerance (unless there are non-dairy equivalents for all tres of the leches). Sorry Catherine.

You will need waxed cupcake cups (about 24) and muffin pans. Place a cupcake case into each muffin space.

Oven temperature

180C

Ingredients

6 large eggs, separated

1ml baking powder
1ml salt
250ml sugar
125g butter, melted and cooled
250ml plain (cake) flour
175ml evaporated milk
125ml cream
175ml sweetened condensed milk
Whipped cream (optional)
Ground cinnamon

Method

• Beat the egg whites, baking powder and salt until it is stiff enough for you to be able to mould it into soft peaks with the beater blades (not quite the stiff peaks needed for meringues).
• Add the yolks and the sugar and mix until creamy - this shouldn't take more than a minute. From this point on, it's probably best to set aside the electric beater and work with a wooden spoon or spatula.
• Fold the butter in gently.
• Blend in the flour, a little at a time.
• Half-fill each of the cupcake cake cases - you're going to need a little space later, so don't overfill them.
• Bake for about 20-25 minutes (adjust if you have a fan-assisted oven).
• While the cupcakes are baking, mix your milks together. You might find this easier if you warm them slightly, but don't let them come anywhere near boiling point.
• Remove your cupcakes from the oven and poke them full of holes using a skewer of some description (I used a metal meat skewer, which worked fine. I found some recipes that suggested tooth picks, but I found those too thin).
• Pour a little of the milk mixture over each cupcake. It will soak in. Repeat until all the milk has been used up. You may have to wait a little while between repeats, to let the milk soak in.
• Leave them to cool.
• Top with whipped cream, if you're going that route, and a sprinkling of ground cinnamon.
• Serve as a dessert or with coffee.

Notes:

• I reckon you could probably do this just as well with a cupcake recipe that calls for fewer eggs and more baking powder. That would certainly make it easier on the pocket!
• You could also try this with a cupcake recipe that involves cocoa powder - I suspect that would be heavenly!
• Being married to a Swede, I have noticed that they tend to use cardamom where I might use cinnamon, and it tastes absolutely wonderful, so you might try ground cardamom over the top as an alternative. Nutmeg would probably also work, if you prefer that.

Chilli con carne

I had never tried chilli con carne before I met my husband, but his mother used to make it regularly. I developed my own version of the recipe over the years. No doubt, it contains ingredients 'proper' chilli con carne shouldn't, and omits things 'proper' chilli con carne should include, but that's the whole beauty of cooking... you can adapt things to your liking!

The one ingredient that might take you by surprise is the chocolate. But in fact, that is an absolutely genuine Mexican thing to do. And, if you've never tried it, now's your chance. I use a chocolate shaving stick (from Hotel Chocolat) but, in keeping with my promise not to make you dash out and buy an ingredient you'll never use up, you could opt to use ordinary dark chocolate. Go with the highest cocoa percentage you can find.

Ingredients
500g lean minced beef
1 onion, finely chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
15-30ml tomato paste
1 cup dried red kidney beans
125ml cheap red wine
Chopped red and/or green chillies to taste (I only use one)
5ml grated chocolate stick and 5ml sugar OR 2 squares of dark chocolate
1 star aniseed
Pinch salt to taste

Method

• Rinse and soak the beans for a few hours (or cheat and use canned ones)
• Lightly fry the mince and onion (I don't use oil, but you might like to add a smidge) until the mince is brown and the onions translucent
• Stir in the chopped tomatoes and the spices and salt
• When the tomatoes have started to soften, add the tomato paste, wine and beans
• Add enough water to cover the mixture - remember the beans will absorb water
• Cover and simmer until the beans have softened (about 30 minutes in a pressure cooker). If the mixture still contains a lot of water at this point, let it simmer uncovered for a while
• Serve with white rice, topped with a splodge of soured cream and a salad. A sprinkle of paprika (or cocoa) over the soured cream looks good.

This also works with corn bread or a baked potato. And leftovers can work as a sandwich filling.

Note:
If you have kids who won't eat vegetables, try finely grating a couple of carrots into the mince during cooking (you can do this with any mince dish, including bobotie). They'll never even notice! Obviously, if you're cooking for young children, you need to consider the chilli levels!

It's worth noting that fussy eaters often readily eat meals they have prepared themselves, even when these contain ingredients they refuse to eat otherwise. There is a school of thought that being a fussy eater can be about exerting control, and in being allowed to prepare the meal, the child has already exercised control. It's worth a shot!