i found the idea for this chocolate cake at chili and ciabatta. it is very rich but goes perfect with fresh strawberries and whipped cream. i made 3/5 of the original recipe (without the raspberries), which was enough for a baking pan of 22cm diameter. the chocolate i used was 63% cocoa – so the cake was very chocolatey. but since it can never be chocolatey enough i also glazed it with a little bit ganache made from cream, chocolate and butter before topping it with strawberries.
these cheesecakes are a favourite ever since i first made them. very easy (and quick!) – whenever i don’t know what to bring to a party i just bring them along. the recipe is adapted from the raspberry swirl cheesecakes at taste.com.au. (but i finally stopped calling them swirl cheesecakes since i never do the swirl part.)
ingredients:
- 10 finely ground oreo biscuits (including filling. any other biscuit will do as well, but it really tastes best with oreos)
- 20g butter, melted
- 50 g frozen raspberries, thawed
- 1 tsp icing sugar
- 375 g cream cheese
- 145 g sugar
- 3 eggs
- optional: lime zest, lime juice
preheat oven to 160°C. line a muffin pan with paper cases. mix ground oreos and butter, divide mixture among paper cases and press down well. bake for 5 minutes, then remove and cool.
mash the raspberries and strain through a sieve. discard seeds and stir in the icing sugar.
beat cream cheese until light and fluffy, then add sugar slowly, beating until combined. add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. (optionally add lime zest and lime juice – in this case adjust sugar to taste). pour cheese mixture over the biscuit bases, then place drops of the fruit puree on top of the cakes.
bake for 10-15 minutes until set. open oven door and allow cakes to cool completely in switched-off oven.
ps: i’m submitting these cheesecakes to the next round of cucina rapida.
pps: for the blueberry version, just use frozen blueberries instead of raspberry puree.
i made this peanut sauce already twice this week, it is just so good.
ingredients:
- 4 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
- 100 ml coconut milk
- 100 – 150 ml hot water
- 3 cm ginger, minced
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp mustard (dijon)
- chili flakes or fresh chili to taste
in a blender, mix all ingredients. transfer to a small pan and let it simmer at medium heat for a few minutes, until the sauce thickens.
i got quite a number of bento equipment for my birthday (thank you again j.!), and today i used it for the first time. i did not really plan in advance, and so it’s nothing more than leftover from yesterday’s dinner (rice and vegetables with peanut sauce). the top layer is even more bland (an egg, carrots and oreos). you see, there is definitely room for improvement.
my favourite ways to eat strawberries: (1) as is (2) mashed with a bit sugar and sour cream. and now i have a third favourite (a bit similar to number two but with way more history):
ingredients:
- 140 ml whipping cream
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 350 g strawberries
- 20g meringues
wash and prepare strawberries, then cut in small pieces. sprinkle with sugar and set aside for a few minutes. crush meringues in little pieces, whip cream. fold strawberries and meringues carefully into the whipped cream. can be served immediately or chilled in the fridge until ready to use.
i have to admit that i first go.ogled “eaton mess”. but guess what? i am not nearly the only one. haha.
i always get a bit confused by the many variants of indian bread. chapati, puri, nan, roti,… i’m making this version for a while now, and i think it is close to chapati (but the dough was originally for the paratha in jaffreys book)
ingredients:
- 100g flour (type 405)
- 100 g flour (type 1050)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp ghee, melted
- 75 – 100 ml water
mix flour and salt, add ghee, then water (by the tablespoon) until the dough comes together, knead for 5-10 minutes, chill in the fridge for an hour.
cut the dough in six pieces, and roll them out – VERY thin. cook in a dry pan from both sides.
finally i’m back in the kitchen, and now i have already a backlog of dishes to blog:
coconut tofu with peanut sauce and broccoli. this is an item from my list of ideas, and while the tofu was not as good as i had expected the sauce (which i slightly altered) was really great, and i will definitely make it again.
the result of another sunday evening fridge cleanup: vegetable risotto with zucchini, mushrooms and peas.
yesterday evening we had aloo gobi and red lentil dal with bread, rice and yoghurt.
and today i made strawberry cheesecake muffins, impromptu recipe. happy mother’s day by the way (to whom it may concern).
empanadas are great for brunch – in fact i made them for the first time to appear on a brunch buffet. so i am submitting this recipe to zorra’s brunch blog event:
the empanadas require a bit of work, but can be prepared well in advance, baked and stored in the freezer. on the day of use they should be thawed for one to two hours, then sprinkled with a bit water and baked at 175° for about 10 minutes. for dipping, i made chimmichurri sauce and tomato sauce (adapted from here).
for this version i used the dough from the original empanadas mendocinas recipe, but the filling was the same as last time i made them. the dough was very nice, way easier to handle than my first try and with a better texture after baking.
ingredients:
dough
- 360g flour
- 110g butter
- 1 egg yolk
- 180 – 200 ml warm milk
- 1/2 tsp salt
filling
- 500g ground beef
- 2 large onions, diced
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp paprika
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tbsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp chili flakes
- 1/2 tsp salt, pepper to taste
- 1 bunch green onions, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley
- 10 green olives, quartered
- 20g raisins, soaked in hot water
- 3 hard boiled eggs, sliced
other
- 1 egg, white and yolk separated
in a large bowl, mix flour and salt. using a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the dough. add egg yolk, then milk in small amounts, knead until the dough comes together. make a flat ball and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
in a large bowl, mix paprika, oregano, cumin, chili flakes, salt and pepper. add ground beef and knead until well combined. chill in the refrigerator until use.
melt the butter in a large pan and cook onions until tender, about 10 minutes. add meat mixture and cook until the beef is done, stirring frequently. let the mixture cool down a bit, add parsley, raisins, olives and chopped green onions and mix well.
on a lightly floured board roll out the dough into a thin sheet and cut out round shapes. i used a cup of 10cm diameter and got 28 empanadas.
add a spoonful of meat mixture on each disc and a slice of boiled egg. brush the edges of the empanada with egg white (i used my fingers for that), fold the empanada disc and seal. twist and fold the edges for a repulgue, or use a fork to finish sealing.
brush with whisked egg yolk and bake at 200°C for 20 minutes.
note: the filling is a bit to much for the dough – i think 3/4 of it could do as well. but since it is so delicious i keep making the full amount, and then use leftovers e.g. on frozen puff pastry.
red lentils are great if there is not much time to cook – they need only about 15 minutes until tender.
ingredients:
- 1 tbsp ghee (or butter oil)
- 1 bunch of green onions
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 4 pieces of celery stalks
- 2 carrots
- 200 g red lentils
- 1/4 tsp chili flakes
- 1 l vegetable stock
- 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- salt, black pepper
cut up celery stalks and carrots into small pieces. seperate green and white of green onions and chop.
in a large pan, heat ghee. add garlic and the white of green onions, cook for two minutes. add carrots and celery, cook for another two minutes. add red lentils, cook fon one minute, stirring frequently. add chili flakes and vegetable stock and let it simmer until the lentils are done (15-20 minutes). right before the end of cooking time, add chopped green parts of the green onions (keep a bit for decoration). season the soup with lemon juice, soy sauce, black pepper and salt.
on our son’s birthday i wanted to make something to take to the kindergarden, and the constraint was to use no eggs – i don’t know if one of the kids is allergic, or if they fear salmonella infections… but banana muffins are a safe bet:
ingredients:
- 2 ripe bananas
- 200g flour
- 50g sliced almonds
- a pinch of salt
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 80 g sugar (brown)
- 200ml yoghurt
- 100ml sun flower oil
in one bowl, mix dry ingredients (except for the sugar). in another bowl, mash bananas, then mix in sugar, oil and yoghurt. stir flour mixture in banana mixture, then stir until the dry ingredients are moistened. spoon the batter into prepared muffin cups and bake at 175° for about 20 minutes.
i also sent along these cookies. i did not particularly like them, since i found them quite dry – which was the reason i decided to bake the muffins in the first place. but i was told that the kids really loved them. on the other hand, i guess they would eat just about anything as long as it is topped with m+m’s.
while making the cookies i noticed that i may have a light control-freak tendency: i ordered the m+m’s by color to make sure that the colors are evenly distributed on the cookies. and did you know that there are far more in green and brown than in any other color?
