8 Skincare Products I Use Daily And Highly Recommend

Photo: Adobe

Through experience, you inevitably learn about skin care products like which ingredients really work, and which knockoffs, identical to their more costly name-brand counterparts, to buy.

Here's what I now use every day in my skincare routine, as well as, for my senior mother whose skin still feels baby soft. I like to pamper her with mild, good clean ingredients to keep her skin healthy and moisturized. I've reviewed the following beauty items in prior blogs, so if you wish to know why they're good for your skin click on their links for a description and list of ingredients. Today's blog will try to save you a few bucks when purchasing them:

8 Skincare Products I Use Daily And Highly Recommend:

 

1) SheaMoisture Soap(s) - to wash with during a shower. T.J. Maxx often carries the bars at $3.99/bar.

2) Noxema Cleansing Cream - to wash my face before bed. I also use it to soothe my mom's dry skin where she needs it, such as her arms. Alternatively, I love the face washes from CeraVe and Cetaphil, as well as, their Walmart Equate knockoffs. Walmart also has a Noxema dupe only for in-store pickup. However, Noxema, the name brand, usually selling at under $5, is cheap enough.

3) Coconut Oil - I buy food-grade coconut oil often from Puritan's Pride, to use as after-bath oil to lock in moisture. The reason for the food-grade coconut oil is to simplify my life and not have to buy 2 different coconut oils. {The same applies to white vinegar for cleaning my home. I buy food-grade, not cleaning-grade white vinegar which lies in the cleaning products aisle of supermarkets. When cheap enough, reduce to one multi-tasking product you have to stock. Saves time! Looks like Puritan's Pride no longer sells what I use, so here's another good online retailer. Costs: $6 - $10 for 16 oz.

If I need extra moisturizers in the fall and winter to slatter on dry skin, I add the following to my skincare routine --

4) Equate Moisturizing Cream (a dupe for CeraVe) - Cost: $10

5) Equate Beauty Gentle Skin Cream with Long-Lasting Moisture (the dupe for Cetaphil). - Cost: $6.40. Cetaphil is a tad thicker than CeraVe. Both knockoffs are excellent, plus they work wonders in moisturizing your face, so mild, light, and absorbent that you can skip buying a separate face moisturizer.

6) Target's Up and Up or Walmart's Equate Baby Powder - We use it after bathing and I often apply a sprinkle with a makeup brush to my face to prevent a shiny complexion. Real face powder has a finer texture, than the cornstarch ingredient in baby powder, but baby powder with cornstarch is still a super substitute. Talic (a finer grain) in body power has been removed in the USA. Price: $2.99 for 22 ounces.

7) Daytime: I use Equate Beauty All Day Moisturizing Sunscreen Lotion for Skin, Broad Spectrum SPF 15. (the dupe for Olay Complete Daily Moisturizer for Sensitive Skin, SPF 15). I'll use whatever I can get, for normal or sensitive skin. You'll pay about $4

8) Nighttime: I apply Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair - I use the cream formula but have also tried the serum. If only buying one of these, get the cream. Cost: $16 at T.J. Maxx or $13 - $16 on eBay. $25 regular retail price.

By learning what's in skincare products, and focusing on key effective ingredients supported by science, you can find knockoffs for less. Look in health food stores, small batch-start-up companies, and drugstores that offer both name brands that go on sale, as well as, drugstore dupes to lower the costs of your everyday skincare. Toss in Equate (from Walmart) and Up and Up (Target's store brand).

We're talking about effective, clean, high-caliber skincare for less. Skincare without compromise you can afford to use 365 days of the year without going broke! You are welcome.

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Crystelle Pereira's Pickle Chicken Curry

I love Indian food, the curry, the spice, but don't make it at home. That's about to change with an easy recipe Crystelle Pereira, the winner of the Great British Bake Off, brought to the Today Show recently. She said it was her grandmother's recipe, so I'll link you to the video here of her making the curry, as well as, post her ingredients and directions so that you and I have a written recipe to follow that won't disappear from the internet as time passes:

Crystelle Pereira's Pickle Chicken Curry

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons extra-virgin coconut oil, for fry 
2 medium brown onions, finely sliced
1 ½ teaspoons ground coriander powder
5 teaspoons Kashmiri chili powder
4 cloves garlic, grated or minced
8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 1¼ pounds), diced 2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
5 tablespoons ketchup
6 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 small sweet potatoes, peeled and diced into small cubes
white rice, to serve

 Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat and fry the
onions with a pinch of salt until browned. This can take 30 to 45 minutes, but patience is a virtue here.

2. Add the ground coriander, chili and garlic, and fry until fragrant, for about 2 minutes. Add the chicken, season with salt and pepper, and fry for about 5 minutes, until the chicken has browned.

3. Add the ketchup and apple cider vinegar and stir to ensure everything is well combined. Add the sweet potato and stir again. Cover with a lid and cook over low heat for 20 minutes, stirring now and again.

4. Remove the lid and cook down for another 5 to 10 minutes,
until the curry has thickened, the chicken has cooked through, and the potatoes are fully cooked and can be speared with a fork. Taste the curry and season to taste, if needed. Serve with white rice.

I hear many chefs say chicken tights are the most flavorful part of a chicken, but our family prefers breast meat, so I'll likely buy breasts for $1.99/pound, cut them into cubes (with my trusty meat sears), and roll the cubes into whole wheat flour for this recipe. Plus I'll make a side of broccoli or green beans and a salad and serve it with brown (not white) rice. For ambitious cooks, here's a recipe for Naan to complete your dinner. As a lazy cook, I'll simply warm mini flour tortillas (4" size) in the microwave although you could also grill tortillas in a cast iron skillet with a brush of oil and then heated to get them closer to Naan. Soft and warm from 30 seconds in a microwave is also fit to go down the pie hole!

Congratulations, Crystelle Periera, on winning a national cooking competition and publishing a cookbook! I hope some of my readers buy a copy of Flavor Kitchen, and I can't wait to make your spicy dish!!🎉🥳 

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Raspberry Cake With A Raspberry Filling

Photo: Bon Appetit 

Although inspired by a delicate raspberry chiffon cake from Bon Appetit, my recipe is tweaked into a different Raspberry Cake. Here's why: First of all, I never buy cake flour (I'm not against it, but I already buy all-purpose, whole wheat, and sometimes bread flour -- enough already😁); 2nd, I think the small amount of flour in the original recipe will produce a puny 2-layer cake; 3rd, whipped cream is delicious, but what a hassle to chill the ingredients twice as you make it. Plus, I've reduced the sugar and salt in the original recipe, and I bet you won't miss them! Enter raspberry oil and/or freeze-dried raspberries (that you grind into a powder). Either enhances the flavor of the cake, and a squeeze of lemon in the batter and frosting balances the sweetness. What I love about European pastries are their nuanced flavors in lieu of ultra-sweetness. Here's my recipe:

Raspberry Cake With a Raspberry Filling

Batter Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2/3 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 eggs, room temperature, and separated

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar (to keep the egg whites stiff and foamy)

1 cup buttermilk (+ a little more if needed)

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon raspberry oil (or 3/4 cup freeze-dried raspberries, ground)

a squeeze of lemon

Batter Directions:

1) In a mixing bowl, sift together the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, ground freeze-dried raspberries if using, and salt.

2) In a 2nd bowl, use a mixer to beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until stiff.

3) Next pour the wet ingredients into the dry and beat with the mixer: vegetable oil, egg yolks, buttermilk, vanilla extract, and raspberry oil if using.

4) Fold in the egg whites -- don't overbeat them. Fold them in.

5) Pour even portions of the batter into 2 - 9 inch buttered and floured baking pans.

6) Bake in a pre-heated 350-degree F oven for 30 minutes or until done in the center. After 5 -10 minutes of cooling, remove the cakes from the pans and let cool completely.

Filling Ingredients:

3 oz cream cheese

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

6 oz seedless raspberry jam or preserves

6 oz fresh raspberries, smashed

Directions for the Filling:

6) Mix the ingredients together and spread in the middle between the 2 - 9 inch cakes. You could carefully slice each 9-inch cake in half to get not one center, but 3 cake centers - spreading the raspberry filling on each center layer. It takes a daring and talented baker to not let the cakes break up into a crumbly mess! A single center layer works fine too and is safer.

Ingredients for the Frosting

5 ounces of cream cheese (+ condensed milk if needed, a little at a time for the right not too thick or thin consistency)

3/4 cup freeze-dried raspberries, ground, (or 1 teaspoon of raspberry oil)

A squeeze of fresh lemon juice

2 cups of confectionary sugar (Add more if needed.)

Save a few whole raspberries for garnish.

Directions for the Frosting

7) Using a mixer incorporate all the ingredients, adding in order.

8) Frost the top and sides of the 2-layer cake.

I like the idea in the original recipe of crushing some of the freeze-dried raspberries to garnish the top of the cake. Also, toss a few fresh raspberries on top. It's pretty!🎂

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Noxema + Extra Virgin Olive Oil Moisturizer

Let me start by saying I'm sharing my personal experience, but I'm not a dermatologist. Recently away from home and in a pinch, I went against a 2012 study claiming olive oil is not a good moisturizer. The study focused on treating eczema, (which I don't have) and explored using plant oils as emollients to improve the skin barrier and thus, soften and improve the skin. 

The study noted that olive oil has low linoleic acid and high oleic acid ratios and concluded: oils with high linoleic acid and low oleic acid ratios moisturize and protect the skin. 

The research also said, olive oil has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant benefits, plus promotes wound healing, but it could also "cause a reduction in the integrity of the outer layer of the skin, called the stratum corneum." For sure a vague part 2 of its findings! What I, a non-dermatologist, think it boils down to is ... olive oil lacks enough ceramides (a family of waxy lipids. Ceramide 1 contains linoleic acid) to sink into the outer layer of the skin -- which isn't a problem if your skin is already damp from a shower plus you add a thin cream like Noxema. (Noxema has linoleic acid.) Certainly, as a sealing layer, olive oil seems to work well by locking in moisture to keep the skin from drying.

To be clear: I find that after stepping out of the shower, slattering on Noxema skin cream (another making due concession) followed by one tablespoon of olive oil keeps my arms and legs conditioned. After removing my leggings at night the skin is like summer legs! No flaking!!

In fact (for me), extra virgin olive oil paired with Noxema is working much better to stop dry skin than the plant oils recommended by the study (that I normally use at home) including jojoba oil, coconut oil, almond oil, argan oil, and rosehip oil.

Olive oil is often an ingredient in moisturizers. Both olive oil and Noxema are cheap!

Scientifically I don't know why olive oil is working better, but one reason could be because it is slightly thicker (i.e., richer) than the other pricier cited plant oils. Now I'd love for scientists to find out why by researching the use of olive oil as an after-bath oil. As a consumer, I desire the most cost-effective after-bath oil that works when used properly, perhaps always pairing it with a lotion containing a high linoleic acid ratio we already stock. One-stop shopping is ideal! Is there any reason to buy more expensive plant oils? How about taking this up, Doctorly on YouTube?

Do you, lovely readers, have a go-to-after-bath oil to fight dry winter skin?

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5 Festive Advent Calendars

The coveted Liberty of London Avent Calendar sells out in October, so you're out of luck if you didn't buy one, but all is not lost. Here are several other festive Advent Calendars available that are spectacular without breaking the bank like Liberty's beauty calendar does. The 5 more affordable advent calendars below are also delightful to give or get especially when paired with Black Friday to Christmas Eve promotions always offered by department stores during the season. The final sterling silver jewelry advent calendar (#5 below👇) is the most expensive choice, however, an upcoming sale day will lower its retail price, and then you'll get a lovely variety of elegantly designed sterling silver earrings including a mix of hoops, studs, cuffs, and crawlers. So keep an eye out for option #5 to get cheaper!

1) The Rituals of Advent 3-D Advent Calendar: See above👆, it's a 3D Christmas tree  with 24 items - What's inside:

• Wonder Mask, 0.35 oz. 
• Amsterdam Collection Body Mist, 0.67 oz.
• The Ritual of Karma Body Shimmer Oil, 1 oz.
• Fortune Balms - Repair for giftset 0.17 oz.
• The Ritual of Sakura Shampoo, 1.6 oz.
• The Ritual of Sakura Conditioner, 1.6 oz.
• The Ritual of Sakura Body Cream, 3.3 oz.
• The Ritual of Namaste Anti-Ageing Day Cream, 0.33 oz.
  
• The Ritual of Ayurveda Scrub Glove
• The Ritual of Ayurveda Coconut Milk Bath Sachet, 3.5 oz.
• The Ritual of Ayurveda Rich Body Oil, 1 oz. 
• Travel - Soleil d'Or, 0.5 oz.
• Elixir Collection Miracle Keratin Recovery Hair Mask, 0.67 oz.
• The Ritual of Karma Mild Body Scrub Clay, 2.3 oz.
• Rituals Homme shower foam, 1.6 oz.
• Sticks for Mini Fragrance Sticks for Advent, 2.3 oz. 
• The Ritual of Jing Hand Lotion, 2.3 oz. 
• The Ritual of Jing Sleep Foaming Shower Gel, 1.6 oz.
• Sport Cooling Shower Gel, 2.3 oz. 
• Advent Mini Candle Private Collection - Savage Garden, 0.88 oz.
• Advent Mini Candle Private Collection - Sweet Jasmine, 0.88 oz.
• Advent Mini Candle Private Collection - Precious Amber, 0.88 oz.
• Advent Mini Candle Private Collection - Suede Vanilla, 0.88 oz.
• The Ritual of Ayurveda USA Mini Fragrance Sticks for Advent, 2.3 oz. 
• Spoon 2022

2) Barbor More to Give Advent Calendar - 24 items - What's inside:

• 
  24 Ampoules (2 ml each): 1 DOC Power Amp Hyaluronic Acid, 1 Hydra Plus, 2
  Algae Vitalizer, 2 Perfect Glow, 3 DOC Power Amp Beta Glucan, 3 Active Night, 3 DOC Power Amp Vitamin C, 3 Multi-Vitamin, 3 3D Firming, 3 Lift Express

Skincare that 

• Lifts, firms, tightens, hydrates, retexturizes, brightens, and minimizes lines and wrinkles for a smoother, glowing more youthful appearance.

3) Macy's 25 Days Of Beauty Advent Calendar - 25 items - What's inside:

• Ahava Ahava 24K Gold Mask, 15 mL / 0.51 fl. oz. 
• Anastasia Beverly Hills Mini Mini Lash Brag, 2.5 mL / 0.08 fl. oz. 
• Bareminerals Mineral Veil Setting Powder, 0.75 g / 0.026 oz.
• Buttah Skin Enterprises Sample Charcoal Detox Mask, 5 mL / 0.016 oz. 
• Cacharel Yes I Am, 5 mL / 0.17 oz.
• Carolina Herrera Good Girl Eau De Parfum, 7 mL / 0.24 oz. 
• Chella Mini Manifest Bronze Eyeshadow Palette, 4 g / 0.14 oz.
• Clinique Moisture Surge™ 100H Auto-Replenishing Hydrator, 15 mL / 0.50 oz. 
• Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm Deluxe Sample, 10 mL / 0.33 oz. 
• First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream, 29.5 mL / 1 oz. 
• Kiehl's Since 1851 Ultra Facial Cream, 7 mL / 0.23 oz. 
• Lancome Advanced Génifique Youth Activating Serum, 8 mL / 0.27 fl. oz. 
• Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Synchronized Multi-Recovery Complex, 7 mL / 0.23 oz. 
• MAC Cosmetics Mac Fix+ Stayover, 13 mL / 0.43 oz.
• Origins Mega-Mushroom Treatment Lotion, 7 mL / 0.24 fl. oz. 
• Perricone MD High Potency Classics Face Finishing & Firming Moisturizer, 7.5 mL / 0.25 oz. 
• Peter Thomas Roth Water Drench® Hyaluronic Cloud Hydrating Eye Gel, 3 mL / 0.10 oz. 
• Philosophy Purity Made Simple One-Step Facial Cleanser, 30 mL / 1 oz.
• Reza Be Obsessed Love My Leave In, 30 mL / 1 fl. oz. 
• Shiseido Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate, 10 mL / 0.33 oz. 
• Sunday Riley Modern Skincare C.E.O. 15% Vitamin C Brightening Serum, 5 mL / 0.16 oz. 
• The Beauty Crop Juice Pot Lip and Cheek Tint - Lychee, 4 mL / 0.14 oz. 
• Tonymoly USA LLC. Plump-Kin Retinol Eye Cream, 10 mL / 0.33 oz. 
• Urban Decay Vice Hydrating Lipstick in Backtalk, 1 g / 0.03 oz. 
• Verb Products Ghost Oil, 17 mL / 0.57 fl. oz.
• Bonus: $10 off your next $40 Macy's Beauty Purchase. Exclusions apply*

4) MAC Bursting With Surprises Advent Calendar - 24 items - What's inside:

• Brow Set Clear
• Dazzleshadow
• 2 Eyeshadows
• Fix+
• Glow Play Lip Balm
• 
  3 Lipsticks
• Liquidlast Liner
• Love Me Liquid Lipcolour
• 2 Mini MAC Lipglasses
• Mini MAC Lipglass Clear
• 2 Mini MAC Lipsticks
• Mini MAC Strobe Cream, 15 ml
• Mini MACStack Mascara
• Paint Pot
• Powder Kiss Liquid Lipcolour
• Powder Kiss Soft Matte Eye Shadow
• Prep + Prime Essential Oils Grapefruit & Chamomile
• Prep + Prime Lip
• Technakohl Liner

5) Sterling Forever 24 Days of Jewelry Advent Calendar Earrings - The beauty companies may have jumped on the advent calendar bandwagon, but traditionally, advent calendars have other goods inside from chocolates and cookies to heartfelt notes with promises of kindnesses. Here's a calendar for jewelry lovers containing dainty sterling silver (a real precious metal) earrings, and they are gifts to keep.

What's inside: 24 pairs of sterling silver and gold-plated sterling silver earrings - a few with freshwater pearls, as well as, one with an artificial pearl, and some with cubic zirconia.

• 15-sterling silver and 9-14K gold plated sterling silver earrings
• Approximate diameter of hoop earrings - 0.87", 0.6", 0.25", 1.4", 0.75", imitation pearl - 2mm
• 
  Approximate diameter of stud earrings - 0.2", 0.3", 0.24", 0.25", 0.28", 0.26", 0.35"
• Approximate diameter of drop earrings - 1.25", 1", pearl - 9mm
• Approximate diameter of ear crawlers - 0.6"
• Approximate diameter of ear cuffs - 0.35", 0.31"
• 1 French hook post closure, 1 friction latch closure, 1 threader post closure, 2 open cuff closures, pinch for the perfect fit, 19 posts back closure
• Heart shape imitation pearl 2.15 mm, drop shape freshwater pearl 8.8 mm, baroque pearls 8.8 mm
• 12 cubic zirconia earrings, 1 created faux imitation opal earring
• Lifetime warranty

The holidays are when we tend to splurge a bit on gifts to make friends and family happy, whether it's an advent calendar of makeup, skincare, candies, or jewelry, the packaging ... i.e., the presentation is as thrilling as the gifts inside. A drawer to open ... a gift to look forward to each day of advent.  

Scrambling for exclusive material things brings little-to-no joy! With these 5 festive and desirable advent calendars, nobody will miss those super expensive, limited-edition, calendars that sell out in October!

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The Beauty Products I Use Right Now

 

Once a month I notice YouTubers post their empties to recommend beauty products they enjoy using. Today I'm doing likewise ... but fortunately, my bottles are filled... and they are in my bathroom being used by me right now. As it turns out, I reviewed nearly all of them on THE SAVVY SHOPPER in previous blogs. Still, loving them and for sure, I'd buy each again, as well as, grab them whenever I see them for less:

Skincare - Daytime Routine:

1) Noxema Cleansing Cream - My old tried and true.

2) Art Naturals Vitamin C Advanced Moisture & Brightening Serum - I have the set and use the retinol at night on nights I don't use the Neutrogena retinol oil.

3) Olay Complete All Day Moisturizer with SPF 15 

4) Cooking grade coconut oil - As an after-shower body moisturizer. It's cooking grade to simplify gathering -- no need to buy 2 coconut oils. Once gone, I'll switch over to extra virgin olive oil for even more simplicity.

Skincare - Nighttime Routine:

1) Noxema Cleansing Cream - used again before bed.

2) and 3) - Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Oil followed by Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Regenerating Cream - They came full-sized as a kit found in the beauty aisle at T.J. Maxx for $16 bucks ... how could I not grab 2 kits -- to use one immediately and put one on deck? Before finding the set, I was already using the retinol cream and after I finish the retinol oil ... do I need both? I'll decide later after I run out.

Hair Care

1) Shea Moisture Peace Rose Oil Shampoo - A stellar overall brand, I buy any formula I see with the Shea Moisture label on it. I've never had a failure with any of the retailer's formulas despite mixing and mismatching the varieties of formulas of their shampoos with their conditioners. I enjoy trying the entire line, but the peace rose smells so AMAZING, I  love it especially!

2) Shea Moisture Jamaican Black Castor Oil Strengthen & Restore Shampoo - I don't yet have the matching condition, but if I see it at T.J. Maxx, it's my next beauty buy. After you try Shea Moisture's many hair products, you can find them at drugstores, Walmart, Target, and Amazon, so you'll never go broke using this none-better, excellent brand!

3) Shea Moisture Manuka Honey & Mafura Oil Intensive Hydrating Shampoo

4) Shea Moisture Superfruit Complex 10 in 1 Multi-benefit Hair Mosque - As fantastic as the other formulas, I grabbed the mosque as another hair conditioner. It leaves your hair clean, not greasy. Again ... 3rd time saying it, you simply can't go wrong with a Shea Moisture formula!

So these are the beauty products I'm now using, folks, my not-so-empties that I'll buy again and again as needed. In recent years I've tried to switch over to as many organics as I can afford, as well as, to simplify my personal care regime, plus find everything needed in the aisles of a drugstore for less! 

It looks like I have lots of hair shampoos and conditions, doesn't it? My goal is to reduce: I keep 1 shampoo and 2 conditioners in the bathroom open and using ... with one extra shampoo and condition in stock waiting in the wings to replace an empty. I'm nearly at my one + one quantity aspiration. #WorkingThroughMyStash.

Drugstores have stepped up their offerings of quality and clean beauty making it unnecessary to shop anywhere else. So convenient and cost-effective for products that truly work!

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Chocolate Mirror Glaze With Berry Mousse

Photo: Renee Robinson - So pretty!

The cake recipes I publish on THE SAVVY SHOPPER are for cakes I tweak and bake myself with the exception of today's cake: Chocolate Mirror Glaze With Berry Mousse. I haven't gotten around to making it yet and therefore, I'll share Renee Robinson's experience as published on Facebook. The top image, ingredients and directions are hers. Renee's finished cake looks amazing! So away we go ... 🎭

Chocolate Mirror Glaze Cake with Cranberry and Blueberry Mousse

 

The Baker: Renee Robinson

Renee says, "I followed the recipe exactly as written [see link below] for the chocolate cakes layer, but have written it out for you, in what I think is easier to understand language." 

Ingredients for the Chocolate Cake:

1 ¼ cups all purpose flour

Photo: recepetineats

2/3 cup cocoa powder (it wasn’t specified, but I {Renee} used dark Valrhona cocoa)
½ teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/3 cups sugar
1 egg yolk
1 egg
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
1 cup milk
2/3 cup hot strong brewed coffee

Directions for the cake: 

Grease and line with parchment paper two 7 inch cake pans. Preheat oven to 325°F.

In a medium bowl mix together flour, cocoa, baking powder, soda and salt.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat oil and sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy. 

Add egg, egg yolk and vanilla extract; mix. Gradually add flour mixture to oil mixture alternately with milk, in three batches, beginning and ending with flour mixture, beating just until combined after each addition. 

At the end add the hot brewed coffee and mix together only 30 seconds. Divide the batter evenly between prepared pans. Bake for 25-30 minutes (or longer - until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean). Cool cakes in pans for 15 minutes then transfer to a wire rack.

Cranberry and Blueberry Mousse

The baker says, "The original recipe called for fresh or frozen black currants. I don’t have access to either, so I substituted other berries and changed the amounts of other ingredients, as seen below."

Ingredients for the Mousse:

300 grams blueberries

500 grams cranberries

Juice of half lemon
Scant 1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons powdered gelatin
2 cups whipping cream
10 tablespoons powdered sugar

Directions for the Mousse:

Place blueberries, cranberries, and sugar in a saucepan. Place over medium heat and cook only until sugar dissolves and fruits burst. Let cool for a few minutes. Add lemon juice. Transfer to a blender and blend until smooth. 

Place 1 tablespoon of the gelatin in a small bowl and cover with cold water. Set aside for 5 minutes to swell. Gently heat softened gelatin in a double boiler or microwave and stir to dissolve. Add to half of warm puree and mix together. Whip half of whipping cream with half of powdered sugar until stiff peaks. 

Gradually add prepared half of berry puree and whip together.
Line the bottom of 9 inch spring pan with parchment paper. On the base – in the center of the pan, place the first chocolate cake and pour over black the berry mousse. Place in the fridge for ½ - 1 hour.

After this time make the second half of the berry mousse, repeating steps described above. Remove the pan from the fridge, place in the center the second sponge and pour over the second half of the mousse. Even the surface and place to the fridge overnight.

The next day carefully remove the cake from the pan. Place on a serving plate and decorate with mirror glaze.

Photo: mandarinpie

Here is the link to the original recipe for the cake.

https://sweetstyledhme.com/.../chocolate-cake-in-black...

Here is the link to the recipe used for the mirror glaze. Renee followed the steps exactly as written in the recipe. https://www.recipetineats.com/chocolate-mirror-glaze

And finally, what does THE SAVVY SHOPPER think? This cake requires more steps than a basic cake, since we must cook and cool things as we bake the cakes (the dreaded have jobs before you do a job syndrome!), and yet finished and plated, it should taste amazing. This summer I'll return here for the recipe to challenge myself by making this fancy, fussy, multi-steps cake, and now my dear readers, you can too! 

If looking to bake a less work homemade cake, try this buttermilk layer cake. There's no shame in an easy recipe as long as a cake is delicious!! I prefer them. As Jon Bon Jovi knows, "You do what you can."🎵🎂

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