Winter weekend with winter chocolate mini cakes

We all are looking forward for the weekend to come, thinking ahead what can be done... when it comes to us it always has to include some kind of activities outside. Living in Sweden now, does not change anything on that fact, we just need to get the right clothes (and by that I mean warm clothes) and off we go. This weekend was no exception either.
On Saturday we woke up just to discover that the sun decided not to make an appearance, so to cheer us up I spontaneously decided to make breakfast in bed. Breakfast in bed is always something super special and is actually quite easy to make. There are various versions but my will always include scrambled eggs and something in a bowl... yogurt with berries, smoothie with fruits and cereals or porridge with berries, honey and nuts. This weekend it was oatmeal-quinoa porridge with fresh blueberries and dried mulberries. Scrambled eggs and crispbread. Easy, delicious and super comfy.
Suddenly there was no issue to go outside and do some activities at the fresh (bit frosty) air... All packed and properly dressed we made our way to the beach. Beach in winter time can be very exciting too... I do admit it is a bit colder as in Spain, but it works and we still manage to do our small picnics. Next to the picnic I always manage to shoot hundreds of pictures, because I discover yet another fascinating big rock, which caught my or Bella's attention. Bella is our newest family member, a Jack Russel puppy who joined our house about a week ago. This little cheeky lady is very curious and obviously as crazy about being outside as us. Despite the fact that is has been only a week when we got her, it feels like she always been with us, she blends in perfect in our little and crazy family and I got an additional photo model on top.

And to make this weekend count even more, as the sun did not appear today either I made our newest favourite... gluten free chocolate mini cakes. They are heavenly chocolaty, deep and dark in taste, exactly what your soul needs, when winter shows herself not from her best side. They are easy to make and with some frosting and berries on top, they transform to a very delicious winter chocolate dessert.

Chocolate mini cake

• 100 g dark chocolate
• 100 g soft butter
• 120 g sugar
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
• vanilla extract
• pinch of salt
• 3 large eggs
• 50 g almond flour (ground almonds) - optional!

Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease or line your muffin form with muffin paper. Put chocolate and butter into a sauce pan and melt it on a low heat. Take it from heat and whisk in sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla extract and salt. Add the eggs, one at the time, whisking them in. You shall get a smooth, shiny and runny chocolate mixture. At this point you can add the almond flour, but the cakes can be easily done without it. I like to add the almonds for additional flavor and texture. Pour the batter into the muffin forms and bake for about 12-15 minutes. The edges will be firm, while the centre still bit moist, this is when the cakes should be taken out of the oven. Let it cool for at least 15 minutes on the cooling rack before taking them out of the baking form. Sprinkle some powdered sugar and serve.

For the frosting I used 3 table spoons of cream cheese, 2 table spoons of powdered sugar and some vanilla extract. You can garnish them with some fresh berries, they will not only make the appearance exceptional, but also add additional taste and freshness to the mini cakes.

Enjoy!