I worked as a software professional earlier and wasn't fond of the work setup. I used to work for 13 hours and come back and try to whip up and bake something to relax myself. It was my stress outlet and gradually I started baking for pleasure, especially for friends who placed orders.

Slowly I realised that the baking world gave me more joy than anything else. Once I quit my job and set up 'Cake My Heart', the journey moved ahead  and soon I was making interesting cakes and unique desserts. I  started making gourmet cakes  and my interest grew as  my grandmother was my continuous inspiration.  

The very fact that one can experiment so much while baking was intriguing for me.  Bite-sized food always fascinated me. I find them challenging and special to work with as they need a lot of precision, patience and carry a personal touch. Be it macarons or handmade truffles, they are  petite which adds on to the excitement. One can also enjoy as many of them as they are smaller in size and thus lower on calories.  

My love for these cute sweet treats and my undying passion for coffee, (something that I cannot do without), is what led me to dish out the 'Kahlua Coffee Pots'.  Made from a coffee-flavoured liqueur, these bite-sized desserts will be delight for any coffee lovers.  The familiar flavour of coffee in a dessert will feel like a mystery unfolding in your mouth.  

So, what are you waiting for? Get going and whip up a storm.      

Recipe:

Kahlua Coffee Pots

Ingredients
To make the Kahlua
filling
Fresh cream- 125 ml
Milk - 125 ml
Instant coffee - 2 tsp
Dark chocolate - 100 gm
Butter - 12 gm
Brown sugar - 2 tbsp
Corn flour - 1 tbsp
Kahlua - 2 tsp
Salt - ½ tsp
Vanilla essence - 1 tsp

To make the sponge discs (Makes 18)
3 eggs separated
Caster sugar - 75 gm
Flour - 90 gm
Vanilla essence - ¼ tsp

To garnish
Whipped cream
Coffee
Chocolate shavings

Method
To make the Kahlua filling
*Pour milk and cream in a saucepan and bring to boil. Take off the heat.
*In a separate bowl, whisk sugar, corn flour, coffee and salt.
*Gradually whisk this mixture to the milk and cream. Add it slowly so that there are no lumps.
*Set over medium heat; bring to a boil while constantly stirring. Take off the heat.
*Add the chopped chocolate, butter, Kahlua and vanilla to the mixture and whisk until the butter and chocolate has melted and the mixture is completely smooth.

To make the sponge discs
*Preheat oven to 180 C and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
*Place egg yolks and sugar in a bowl and cream together until thick and pale.
*In another bowl beat the egg whites until stiff peaks.
*Fold the egg yolks to the egg white mixture.
*Sift flour and add vanilla essence to the egg mixture.
*Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 1 cm/ ½ cm round nozzle.
*Pipe little blobs on the baking sheet and bake for 10-12 mins.
*When cooked, peel off the sheet and place on a wire rack to cool completely.
*If there is excess, refrigerate in an air tight container.

Assembling of the pots
*In pretty medium sized cups, arrange the sponge discs to cover the base.
*Pour a few teaspoons of Kahlua (or coffee syrup) so that the sponge soaks in all the liquid.
*Spoon the Kahlua filling into the cups till the brim. Cover with cling  film and refrigerate for 2 hours to firm up.
*Pipe little swirls of whipped cream, dust with coffee and sprinkle some chocolate shavings.

Sandhya Parthasarathy