Strawberry and champagne layer cake for the 1st year of blogging!

A year ago I created this blog and I embarked on a beautiful journey. Though my passion for food was great to start with, but during this year, the passion grew along my skills and techniques. I learned a lot from all the comments and reviews and continue to learn from everyone who share my love and passion for food, especially sweets.

The spirit of sharing recipes with people across the world is hard to describe; it is overwhelming. It fills my heart with joy. I got inspired, developed and created recipes throughout this year, playing with ingredients I am used to and love and even some new ones. Hopefully, the coming year will be just as rewarding as this year has been.  

To celebrate my first year of blogging, I thought of a recipe worthy of the occasion. I decided to use champagne as it is the drink of choice in celebrations, complemented by strawberries.
Keeping with the celebration theme, the cakes I made were colorful, joyful and reflect the colors of the main flavoring ingredients (champagne and strawberries) which were also use to flavor the decadent butter cream cake frosting.

So to make the cake you will need to do the following:

For the cake (4 x 13 cm pan or 5 inches)

• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 200 g sugar
• 200 g sifted flour
• 90 g melted butter
• Tsp and a half of baking powder
•  A dash of salt
• 70 g of strawberry and champagne syrup (recipe follows)
• 1 tsp vanilla

Combine flour, salt and baking powder and set aside. Cream eggs and sugar, until they become a whitish fluffy batter, and when you drop some batter on the surface it will hold few seconds before sinking. Add the vanilla, then the butter and whisk again until well combined.

Turn off the mixer and with a spatula start combining the flour mixture. Add it in two batches. When combined add the syrup.

Pour the batter into 4 pans, pre-greased and lined with parchment or wax paper, or in 2 batches if you don´t have 4 pans of the same size. Keep the rest of the batter in the fridge while you bake the first batch.

If you want to color your batter just add a drop of food coloring, fill in the first pan, than add another drop of food coloring, and fill the second pan with batter and so on until you fill the four pans. This will you will have a difference in the color intensity or color gradients.

Bake in a preheated oven (180C) for about 20 minutes.

Let the cake cool for 5 min in the pan then remove and put on a cake wire to cool completely.

For the syrup:

• 75 g strawberry puree
• 75 g champagne
• tbsp vanilla sugar or you can use half vanilla bean and a tbsp sugar

Combine all ingredients and let it simmer for about 10 min. When done, you can process it to get a smoother syrup.

For the butter cream you need:

• 75 g water
• 180 g sugar
• 75 g egg whites, at room temperature
• 270 g butter, at room temperature

Combine sugar and water, put it on medium high heat, at the same time start whisking the whites at medium speed. When the syrup reaches 120 C then it´s ready to be poured over the foamy and doubled in size egg whites. If you don´t have a thermometer, you need to watch when the syrup forms big and uniform bubbles on the surface, or if you are very courageous you can put your fingers in ice cold water, then dip it in the syrup quickly and then cool it back in the cold water. If the syrup ball forms threads when pulled apart then it's ready. I honestly recommend you make a small investment and buy a thermometer.

Slowly pour the syrup over the egg white, and increase the speed of the mixer, and keep whisking until the white is very creamy and shiny, when the sides of the bowl are rather warm start adding the butter piece by piece while the mixer is still on and on high speed, when the butter is well combined you can add a tsp of vanilla essence or 2 tsp of champagne!

cake assembling:

Brush each layer with the remaining syrup, then spread some of the butter cream on the first layer, add the second layer and repeat until you have all the layers. I also added freshly sliced strawberries between each layer.
Frost the cakes with an outer layer of butter cream. At this stage, chill the cake for 30 min in the fridge. Than add another layer of butter cream. Chill and then add the final layer. At this stage, you can play with the color shades and intensity, or you can decorate according to your desires and used geometric or free form motifs, the choice is yours.

I finished the decoration with macarons, that I had painted and filled with the same buttercream!

Though the cake was not the easiest one I made, in fact it was time consuming, but I can guarantee that it was absolutely worth the effort.

A big thank you for all the people who visited the blog, shared the recipes and tried some, so grateful, hope you keep on visiting and liking what I do!

Unfortunately the pics don´t show how cute the cake was, I took them late in the evening and was hard getting a good shot, but what was important that it tasted real good, and I hope you do try the recipe!

Orange and poppy seeds pancakes!

I was taught early on by my mother that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. To this day, I religiously follow her advice. Forget all the technical jargon nutritionists throw left and right, which most of the time I don't really understand, but I firmly believe if you start your day on a positive note you will most likely have a good and productive day.

I like to treat myself during the weekends with a more decadent breakfast. Pancakes, among others, are a favorite of mine, as they can be easily tweaked and modified so that you are never bored and feel as if you are trying something new every single time. Whoever invented pancakes, I salute you, you deserve my deepest gratitude!

For this pancake recipe, I used orange peel and poppy seeds as the main flavoring ingredients. Orange add a wonderful taste and fragrance whereas the poppy seeds add the crunch and more nutritious elements.

I topped the whole with strawberry sauce for a fresh, fruity and sweet touch. For me, it's the perfect way to start your day, especially on the weekend, or just any other if one has time.

For the pancakes you need (for 2 people):

• 130 g flour
•  20 g vanilla infused sugar (or just sugar)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• dash of salt
• 2 tsp orange zest
• 1 tbsp poppy seeds
• 1 egg (yolk and white separated)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
• 160 g buttermilk
• 25 g melted butter

Combine all the dry ingredients with the zest and seeds and mix well. Mix egg yolk, vanilla and buttermilk. Beat the egg white until soft peaks form (or you can just mix the whole egg with the buttermilk, but beating the egg white apart will give a great fluffy texture so it´s really worth it if you have time). Make a hole in the dry ingredients, add the buttermilk mixture then the butter and mix well, slowly fold the egg white, in 2 or 3 batches, when well combined, just let the batter rest for 10 minutes and bake it in a large skillet over medium heat.

Strawberry sauce:

• 100 g finely diced strawberry
• 20 g  sugar (vanilla flavored is better)
• 3 tbsp orange juice

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and let it slowly simmer on a low heat, after 10 min, the sauce will be ready. You can serve it chunky or blend it to have a smoother sauce. This time I wanted it smooth, even if I prefer the chunkier variety, but it's up to you to decide which suits you better.  

I served the pancakes with a strawberry sauce, but they really go well with raspberry or blueberry sauces or even dark or semi-sweet chocolate sauces. The choice is yours, after all it's your power breakfast and it has to be your way!

Coco-choco cupcakes!

Dark, fudgy and sweet

The weather is still acting up here in Madrid, from a hot weekend to a cloudy and cold one. I haven´t had any vacation time for more than 6 months, and I still have to wait a bit. I am really longing for long days on the beach doing nothing and just enjoy everything that the seaside offers. So until then, I have to keep myself busy and indulge myself every now an then with a sweet treat, until I can finally escape the hectic city life.
We all know how uplifting chocolate can be, so I wanted to do a dessert with chocolate but flavored with an ingredient that denotes warmth, sandy beaches and vacation times, and what better than coconut to deliver just that.

The batter will make around 7 cupcakes

Of course, the recipe I developed is easy and relies on ingredients you are most likely to have in your pantry. To complement the cupcakes, the frosting was also a breeze to make.
The end result of my work: fugdy coco-choco cupcakes with a pronounced chocolate flavor that goes so well with the refreshing taste of coconuts. The perfect dessert after a long and hard day at work.

Now let´s see what you need for these cute and delicious cupcakes!

Baked and waiting to be frosted

For the batter you need: (makes 7)

• 1 egg
• 60 g  flour
• 10 g cocoa powder
• 70 g soft butter
• 65 g vanilla sugar
• 3 g baking powder
• dash of salt
• 30 g melted and cooled chocolate
• 70 ml coconut milk
• 3 to 4 tbsp shredded coconut and lightly toasted (if you wish more intense flavor)
• tsp of coffee liquor (or just use vanilla essence)

Combine the dry ingredients and sift them. In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar, once well combined add the egg with the liquor, mix till well blended. Add the chocolate and mix again, when all combined, turn off the mixer, add the flour and fold into the batter. Add the coconut then the coconut milk. 

Fill the cupcakes cases about half way, pop them in a preheated oven (180C) and bake for about 20 minutes. 

Chocolate and butter frosting:

• 100 g condensed milk
• 100 g soft butter
• 20 to 40 g sifted cocoa powder (depends on how chocolaty you want the frosting)
• 20 g coconut cream (it´s the cream you find when you open the can of the coconut milk)

Be generous with the frosting

This recipe has been used by my family for as long as I can remember using frosting on cakes and Christmas logs, it is so easy to make and delicious. You just need to combine the milk, butter and coconut and mix until well combined, start adding the cocoa powder, mix well until you have a fluffy mixture. Leave it in the fridge for about half an hour before using.

Decorate with few coconut shavings

Now you can frost your cooled cupcakes, I added freshly shaved coconut to decorate and add more flavor. Enjoy!

Enjoy these cupcakes in any weather and any time

Cookies for New Born Babies!

For the last couple of weeks, I have been making lots and lots of cookies and decorating them using different ideas. For some reason, once you start decorating cookies, you will hardly be able to stop.

With so many themes, you will never run out of ideas to transform a humble cookie into a work of art. So let your imagination flow and delight your family and friends with special cookies.

I'm fairly a novice in cookie decoration as I started less than a year ago and I am still learning a lot about the techniques of cookie decoration. Although it's a time consuming activity, it's nevertheless very rewarding and I just love it.

Every now and then a friend or a family member welcomes a new born baby bringing a ray of sunshine into the lives of all those who encounter him/her. To celebrate such occasions, us grown-ups  indulge ourselves with sweet treats and cookies are becoming ever more popular in such occasions which inspired me to create these cookies.

To create the shapes you will see in the pictures below, I bought the cutter shaped like a baby onsie but I managed to create the baby shape and the bib using cutters I already have.

I used a sugar cookie dough recipe which takes time to master. Additionally, making the perfect royal icing is definitely not easy. Needless to say that piping and keeping your hand steady is a challenging task. I am not saying this to discourage you, but keep in mind that decorating cookies takes time and patience, lots of it.

Now, I will leave you with some of the pictures I took, the fruit of my hard labor.

Pink pepper caramel and chocolate ganache mini tarts, a perfect dessert!

An elegant and packed with flavor dessert, a must try

Spring is lingering here in Madrid, sometimes it feels we´re still in November and we´re less than 3 weeks away from summer! So instead of craving for ice-cream and sorbet, I am still in the mood for  chocolate and comforting food!

And as I became addicted to salted caramel, I decided to make a recipe involving my unshakable  addiction that is chocolate and combine it with my rather new one! You can find hundreds of recipes combining these ingredients but I took my time to develop something that it isn't entirely new but has a unique twist to it.

Pink pepper berries, not only look good but also taste great

Few weeks ago I purchased some lovely pink pepper, and they provided me with the twist I wanted for the recipe. The different elements of the recipe came together: spicy caramel that is complemented and softened with a creamy rich chocolate ganache all resting on a bed of buttery pastry dough.

For the dough you need: (enough for 4 small starts)

• 75 g cold butter
• 15 g  sugar (flavored with vanilla)
• 15 g powdered sugar
• 10 g ground and lightly toasted almonds
• 140 g flour
• dash of salt
• Liquid (about 15 gr, you can either use cold water, milk or cream, I used cream)

The different components of the dessert

Combine all ingredients, but the liquid, in a food processor and mix for less than a minute, you can slowly add the liquid to the rest of ingredients and mix again, or transfer the mixture to a bowl and then slowly add the liquid, mixing (not kneading) until the dough forms a ball.
Flatten the dough into a disk shape, cover it with plastic film and let it rest in the fridge for at least 30 min.
Roll the dough to a 1/2 cm thick, put it in the tart molds and blind bake for 10 min (180) remove the weight you are using and then bake for an additional 8 to 10 min, or until edges are golden brown.

Add a twist to the ordinary chocolate tart

Pink pepper Caramel sauce: 

• 50 g sugar
• 10 g water
• 20 g cold butter
• 1/4 tsp fleur de sel (high quality flaky salt)
• 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp pink pepper (if you wanted more spicy add one tsp)
• 100 ml cream

I already explained in details the procedure you need to follow to prepared salted caramel in this post. However, you just need to add the pink peppers at the end, and leave them to infuse their flavor for at least 30 min.

For the chocolate ganache:

• 90 g dark chocolate (60 %, higher if you really like the bitter chocolate taste)
• 120 ml cream (35%)
• 1 tbsp corn syrup
• 1/2 tsp vanilla

Different flavors and textures in this special tart

Heat the cream until it simmers than pour over grated or chopped chocolate, stir until well combined and the chocolate well melted. Finally add the syrup which will give the ganache a beautiful shine. You can play around and add any other aroma you like or use small amounts of strong fruity liquors to add punch and taste to your ganache. 

Now that you have everything ready, fill the lower end of the tart of with the spicy salted caramel. Do not be tempted to add more caramel as the tart will be a bit too sweet. Put the tart shells in the fridge to allow the caramel to set. Once set, pour the ganache to the top of the tart, and this is it. Your tart is ready.Let the ganache set in the fridge and enjoy these tarts. 

The crumbly pie dough combined with the spicy and sweet caramel all topped with the creamy and chocolaty ganache make a perfect dessert. 

The different layers of the pie come together to make a perfect dessert

Peanut butter and caramel sandwich cookies with nutella filling!

Cookie sandwiches, yum!!

I wanted to create a different recipe that combines some of my favorite sweet things, but I didn't want to  stress myself and stay kitchen bound for hours and hours. So I went into the kitchen  I opened the fridge, and voila, the idea came to my mind.  I saw my big nutella jar and I knew I needed to do something that uses said that luscious nutty chocolate cream.

So the train of thought led me to think of something I can sandwich nutella in between. The first thing that popped into my mind was to create a cookie sandwich with a nutella filling. I also wanted to have a more complex flavor so I opted for peanut butter cookies.

The first time I tried peanut butter I hated it and I couldn't understand why people would eat such a thing. Few years later, I tried peanut butter again and I don't know what happened, but I am officially addicted to peanut butter.  I always have a jar or two in the cupboard!

Nutella and salted caramel filled cookies

So finally I decided it will make these sandwiches, I got my scale, my food processor, prepared my ingredients and went on with the preparation. The result was just amazing and what was more amazing is how little effort it took to prepare.

Those cookies were perfect for the weather we have had the past few days, rainy and cold. These chewy yet crumbly cookies were so comforting with a hot cup of coffee, watching TV and hiding under the blanket!

Simply irresistible. 

What you need for about 20 cookies:

• 40 g unsalted butter (cold)
• 60 g peanut butter (I used smooth)
• 30 g granulated white sugar
• 100 g flour
• 20 g caramel sauce

I had more than my fair share of cookie sandwiches!

Combine all ingredients except the caramel in your food processor and pulse until you have a rather sandy mixture (it takes less than a minute). If you take some of the dough and press it will come together. Now add the caramel and pulse again, the dough will come together, if not add some more caramel, but add a bit at a time as you don´t want a soggy dough!

Form the dough into a disk and let it rest for 30 min in the fridge.

Take the dough out of the fridge and roll it between two sheets of baking paper until it is about half cm or less in thickness. Using a round cutter, cut small circles. My circles were around 5 cm in diameter. Before baking the cookies, put them in a freezer to rest for 15 minutes, this way they will keep their shape.

Put the cookies on a baking tray lined with baking paper in a preheated oven (175C) and bake for about 10 minutes.

Now just spread your nutella, or some salted caramel sauce and enjoy! 

Served with a warm hot chocolate, it's the ultimate comfort!

Rice pudding: the vegan version

A variation of a classic recipe

In a previous post I had shared one of my favorite rice pudding  recipes, one I always had when I was a child. Just a couple of years ago, I started making a vegan version adding a different touch to this classic recipe.

As vegan and vegetarian diets become more popular, it's only natural to create dessert recipe that appeal to the people who adopt these diets. Though it's a health choice for many, it's a necessity for some who cannot for various reasons consume dairy products and the like. As for me, I'm a happy omnivorous person! However, I do consume more fruits and vegetables than meat and dairy products.
That´s why, from time to time, I like making recipes that have no eggs, dairy or animal products. These come really handy when I am feeling lazy but craving for a balanced and healthy sweet treat.

This recipe is divided into two parts: the first one consists of preparing the sauce that accompanies the pudding whereas the second is the pudding itself.

If you go through some of the recipes I shared so far you will notice my love for summer berries. Indeed I consume a lot of berries and I just can't get enough. They are delicious fresh and they are even better when baked or cooked.
Featured in this recipe are blueberries which have a fragrant and acidic flavor that is only enhanced with the addition of sugar or a sweetening agent. I will use blueberries to make the perfect sauce for the rice pudding.

Fresh or cooked, bluberries are tasty and good for you

So let´s start first with making the sauce:

• 60 g bluberries
• 20 g sugar (you can add more for extra sweetness)
• 2 tbsp orange juice
• Half vanilla pod
• Sprinkle of cinnamon (optional)

The blueberry sauce, bursting with flavor!

Combine the blueberries with the rest of the ingredients in a saucepan and let them slowly simmer for about 8 to 10 min until the blueberries let their juice out. Before turning off the heat you can add some more berries to the sauce for more variation in texture  but this time I didn´t do so!

As for the rice you need: (for 1 serving)

• 50 g of jasmine rice (or you can use any other kind but of course the cooking time will be different)
• 150 g soy milk
• 50 ml water
• 15 g sugar and a dash of cinnamon

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan, let them simmer on a moderate heat first, for few min, then let the rice cook slowly for about 30 min, don´t forget to stir every 3 or 4 min.

When the rice is ready, let it cool a bit.  Unlike the traditional non-vegan recipe, I enjoy it while it´s still warm, .

Mix some of the sauce with the rice. Sprinkle some toasted flaked almonds or coconuts on top, and dig in. Of course, add some more sauce as you eat. Bon appetit.   

A light, fresh and fruity dessert.

Osmaliyeh (عثملية): angel hair cake!

An exquisite dessert with great textures and flavors

This is one of these desserts that remind me of my sweet childhood years. It is usually served on special occasions or as after a great meal assembling the extended family members or special friends. Either way, it is always delightful!

The name ossmaliyeh, a bit hard to translate but it means ottoman girl or woman!

I couldn´t find any reference on how and where the recipe started, but I guess the name goes back to the era of the Ottman empire, where most of the Levant was under their control. The recipe is made of shredded phyllo dough known as kataifi, which it seems is of ottoman origins but now is widely used across the globe and in hundreds of ways!

Few ingredients are needed to succeed this delectable dessert

It is a simple recipe. You will need to buy the phyllo dough and you can can buy the ashtah fresh or you can make it following this recipe, It will take sometime but the result is worth the effort. I would suggest that you use heavy cream, cream cheese or mascarpone in case you can't find ashtah. This is not a filling I would be used to in this recipe, but you can prepare something similar to a fresh cheesecake filling.

What you need for this recipe: (enough for 4)

• 200 g shredded phyllo or kataifi
• 75 melted better
• 20 g powdered sugar
• Ground pistachios and rose jam for decoration
• Simple syrup (I used this recipe, but instead of lemon peel I used half stick of cinnamon and halved the amount of the ingredients)
• About a  cup of kachta or achta (I added a half teaspoon of rose water and another  half of orange blossom water to the cream)

Easy assembly with the filling and the dough

First start by fluffing the shredded phyllo as they come firmly packed, it´s very important to do so to have a crunchy but soft texture. Add the sugar, mix well then add the butter and mix until all the phyllo is covered with the butter.

Golden, crispy, sweet with a creamy heart.

Generously butter a 18 cm pan add half of the amount of the dough then press with another pan of the same size.  Put in a preheated oven (200 C) and bake for 5 min, remove the top pan and bake until golden, it will take between 10 to 15 min.

Repeat the same procedure with the remaining amount of the dough. Now you have two golden crunchy phyllo dough shells. 

You can also make a mini version.

Wait until the dough is cold before removing from pan, it might break if you do so while it´s still warm.

Assembling is very easy, place the first layer on the serving platter. Cover it with kachta (the amount you want to put is really up to your taste). Put the second layer over the kachta to cover it.

Finally, garnish with pistachios, rose jam and a small amount of kachta and serve with the syrup! Enjoy!