Poppy Seed Coconut Extravaganza

 

   Some recipes have way too many good ingredients that would take a looong line to name them all in the title, so I'd rather stick to how this delicious dessert looks like to me: an extravaganza :D 

   I found the recipe randomly on Facebook here recommended as an Easter dessert to get rid of the egg whites you might have leftover from making other cookies or cakes (Romanians like to bake a lot for Easter AND Christmas). In my case, I had to improvise with a recipe using the egg yolks as I was set on trying out this particular recipe in the first place. 

   I've never baked a cake with poppy seed before even though I know I love the taste of it! Coconut is from the getgo one of my fave and the chocolate mousse on top is very familiar to me :D I decided to only make half the recipe for starters but I already know I'm going to make it again! :D Let me show you how to make it:

Ingredients for half the recipe (12 pieces):

For the base:

- 4 egg whites

- 88g sugar

- 25g flour

- 25g poppy seeds

- 50g coconut

- peel and juice from 1/2 lemon

- 2,5g baking powder

- a pinch of salt

For the syrup: (don't make more, or else your cake will be TOO moist)

- 60ml of water

- 1 Tbsp sugar

- a splash of lemon essence

For the cream:

- 100g dark chocolate

- 25g white and milk chocolate

- 100 ml whipping cream

- 125g mascarpone

- a pinch of salt

Steps:

Making the base:

1. Bring the egg whites to room temperature and sprinkle a little salt over them, then mix them with the mixer until they make a foam.

2. Gradually add the sugar and lemon juice and continue to mix until you get a firm meringue.

3. Incorporate the flour together with the baking powder, then add, lightly mixing with a spatula, the coconut, grated lemon peel and poppy seeds.

4. Line the base of the tray with baking paper, and grease the inner walls with oil and sprinkle sugar on them. The sugar sprinkled on the walls of the trays has a beneficial effect in taking the cake out of the tray after baking. This way it will not stick to the tray walls at all.

5. Spread the egg white composition with poppy seeds and coconut in a small tray (since we're only doing a half recipe) and put it in the preheated oven at 180 degrees, for about 20 minutes or until it passes the toothpick test.

Preparing the syrup:

Boil the water together with the sugar and at the end add the lemon essence, then let the syrup cool.

Preparing the chocolate cream: 

1. Heat the whipping cream to near boiling point and add the broken chocolate pieces in it.

2. Stir vigorously until the chocolate melts, then let the cream cool down completely (you can also put it in the fridge for about 10 min to speed up the process).

3. Incorporate the mascarpone in the cream and add a pinch of salt to intensify the taste. Mix with the mixer until you obtain a wonderful cream.

Assembling the cake:

When the base has cooled down, put the syrup over it, then portion it (you can use a circular cookie stencil or just cut it in squares) and then decorate each portion with chocolate cream. 

You can sprinkle whatever you want on top to make it look more attractive. I chose coconut flakes, but you can also grate some white chocolate :D

Bon appetit!

Deconstructed Stuffed Potato with Egg

 

   I looove hash browns in the morning and if there's salame, egg and cheese involved, I'm sold! :D I found this recipe on Lara's Delish Instagram account a few days ago and I tried it for the first time today! I really liked it and it reminded me and my husband of a deconstructed stuffed potato so that's what we're going to call it from now on! :D So, let's see how to make it:

Ingredients for 2 servings:

- 3 medium potatoes, skin on

- 2 Tbsp olive or sunflower oil

- Salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder

- 3 green onion stems, sliced (or a small white onion)

- 2 cloves garlic, sliced

- a few thick slices of your favorite salami (I used Chorizo), diced

- 2 eggs

- some grated hard cheese you have in the fridge (cașcaval)

Steps:

1. Turn on the oven at 250 degrees C on the ventilation function.

2. Wash the potatoes well and cut them into small cubes (max 1cm). Wipe the potatoes with paper towels and mix them with oil and the spices (you can add, as desired, other spices / herbs).

2. Transfer the potatoes to a large tray, arranging them in a single row. Put in the preheated oven for 15 min. (If they start to brown too quickly, lower the temperature.)

3. Meanwhile, fry the green onion, the garlic and the chopped salami in a little oil over medium heat for a couple of minutes. 

4. After 15-20 minutes (the potatoes should be almost ready), turn the oven to 220 degrees. Remove the tray and add the salami with green onion and garlic. Put the eggs on top and then put the tray back in the oven for 5-10 minutes or until the eggs are ready.

5. Add the cheese and leave for another 1 minute and then remove the tray. Et voila! Bon appetit! :D 

P.S. I recommend eating this dish with pickles! :D

Linzer cookies with plum jam

   I wonder how you choose the recipes that intrigue you the most and make you say "Yes! I want to try this!" In my case, it's very easy. Do they have my favorite ingredients? Check! I don't even care very much how easy or difficult the recipe is, if the picture looks promising, I'll definitely try it! :D This is also the case with this recipe from Teo's Kitchen. 

    I noticed that ever since I'm pregnant I have a soft spot for plum jam and I want to try lots of recipes with it:)) This dessert is definitely worth it! I have to warn you though: while making the dough is not difficult at all (although beware of its consistency, I had to add more flour afterwards), making the cookies and putting them together was a long, tedious process because the upper cookie has a "window" and the nuts on top have to only go on the edge of the cookie, not cover the jam. Mmmmyeah, if you want to make this recipe make sure you don't have anything else planned for the day and just take it slow and enjoy the process :) You'll surely enjoy the result, too! ;)

Ingredients for about 20 cookies:

- 200g flour (you might need more if the dough ends up too soft like mine)⠀

- 100g powdered sugar ⠀

- 1 teaspoon vanilla essence⠀

- 100g almond flour ⠀

- 150g soft butter (room temperature) ⠀

- 2 eggs (1 whole egg + 1 egg yolk) ⠀

- a pinch of cinnamon powder ⠀

- 200g plum jam

- coarsely chopped hazelnuts, almonds or walnuts (I used walnuts)⠀

⠀

Steps:

1. Using a stand mixer, mix butter + powdered sugar + vanilla until you have a foam. 

2. Put the egg + the yolk. Mix some more. 

3. Add the white flour and the almond flour and mix until you form the dough. 

4. Put the dough in the fridge for 1 hour. ⠀

5. Take the dough out of the fridge and cut it into 2 pieces. You will have to make two sheets: one for the "full" cookie and one for the "window" cookie.

6. Roll both sheets of dough for about 1/2 cm. Make sure your dough is not breaking apart. I used more flour than the recipe requested to make the dough easy to work with, otherwise I couldn't unstick the cookies from the table. So play around and see which consistency works best for you. 

7. Make the cookies using a bigger round shape and then a smaller one for the "window" of the cookie on top. 

8. Preheat the oven at 180°C, then put the cookies together. Make sure you can easily "transport" the cookies in the baking tray without breaking, then add the plum jam (be generous) and the "window" cookie on top. 

9. Brush all the cookies with the remaining egg white, then sprinkle the nuts on the edge of each cookie.

10. Bake them for 20-25 min et voila! Bon appetit! :)

Creamy Tomato Salmon with Chorizo and Mario's Pasta Salad

 

   Anna's table (hover over the name to find the original link) was once again the inspiration for this dish! Anything that has chorizo, sun-dried tomatoes and a creamy sauce makes me say "I'm IN!" and when this is paired with salmon... color me intrigued. This dish was my first red sauce salmon dish and I'm not looking back! I loved it so much I had to share it with you! 

     Even if the original recipe says you can eat it simply paired with bread, we decided to make Mario's pasta salad as a side. Who's Mario? Our Airbnb host from Bologna who made this pasta salad for us and we've been making it back home ever since! :D

    I'll say one thing: sure, maybe you don't have chorizo or sun-dried tomatoes lying around in the fridge, but even if you have to go the extra mile to get some of the ingredients, it's definitely worth it! I'd make it if I wanted to impress some guests ;) Yep, it's THAT good :D

Ingredients for 3 servings:

- 3 salmon fillets (150-200g each) - skin removed

- 100 g spicy Spanish chorizo sausage, diced

- 3 Tbsp olive oil

- 4 garlic cloves, minced

- 1 shallot, finely chopped

- 400 ml tomato sauce

- 200 ml light cream

- 40 g grated parmezan

- 120 g semi sun-dried tomatoes

- 1 tsp chili flakes

- 2 tbsp fresh chopped oregano

- salt and black pepper

Mario's salad:

- aprox. 200g pasta of your choice

- 5-6 cherry tomatoes

- 1 medium carrot

- 1 cornichon cucumber

- a small can of corn

- fresh basil

Dressing for the pasta salad: 

- 4-5 Tbsp olive oil

- mayo to taste

- 3 anchovies

Steps:

1. Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan over high heat. Add the chorizo and cook, stirring frequently, for 3–4 minutes or until golden and crispy. Remove, leaving the oil in the pan and set aside.

2. Pat the salmon fillets dry with a paper towel and season all over with salt and pepper. Add to the same pan and sear, about 3-4 minutes on each side. Remove from the pan and set aside.

3. In the same skillet, add shallot and garlic, cook until softened, about 2 minutes. 

4. Add tomato sauce and bring to a simmer, allow to cook for 5 minutes.

5. Boil the pasta for the salad. Peel and cut the veggies for the salad.

6. Returning to the main dish: stir in light cream, parmesan, oregano and sun-dried tomatoes, simmer for about 3 minutes. 

7. Season with salt, pepper and chili flakes. 

8. Add salmon back into the skillet. Allow to cook for 3 more minutes or until the salmon is just cooked through and the sauce is slightly thickened.

9. Serve the dish topped with fresh oregano and crispy chorizo. 

10. Mix the veggies and the pasta to make the salad. Serve as a side. Bon appetit! :)

Delicious cherry tomato and feta pasta

   I found out about this recipe from my brother. Apparently it was such a big hit in Finland that ALL the supermarkets went out of feta for a while. Can you believe it? I now can! I had NO IDEA a 2 ingredient pasta could be SO delicious! And it's sooooo easy to make it's almost embarassing! :)))) Are you ready? Let's go!

Ingredients for 3 servings:

- 400 g feta (Instead, if you live in Romania, Cluj, I recommend Telemea from Bonas - nothing compares to it! I tried the recipe again using Napolact Telemea and Creamy Cheese from President but it's not the same)

- 250g cherry tomatoes 

- olive or sunflower oil

- dried oregano and basil

- 300g Tagliatelle pasta

*Optional: fresh basil for serving

Steps:

1. Cut the feta/telemea into slices and put it in a baking tray with the cherry tomatoes. Add some oil on top, then sprinkle dried oregano and basil. 

2. Bake at 200°C for 30 min tops.

3. Boil the pasta.

3. When ready (the feta/telemea has to have melted and the tomatoes look baked too), mix the feta/telemea and tomatoes into a sauce using a wooden spoon OR blend it with the blender.

4. Add the sauce on the pasta and mix. 

OPTIONAL: Add basil on top. 

Et voila! Bon appetit! One of the most addictive dishes you've ever tried! :D

 

Plum jam brownie muffins

 

You know that moment when you scroll aimlessly on Instagram and you suddenly see a recipe that leaves your mouth watering and you know you have all the ingredients at home? That happened to me with this recipe I found on Corina Ureche's Instagram account. It was originally posted as a brownie recipe, but since I decided to half the recipe I realized it would look better in the shape of muffins and I really like the result! It's such an easy and great looking recipe! You must try it! :)

Ingredients for 6 muffins:

- 100g dark chocolate

- 50g butter, diced

- 2 eggs

- 60g whole wheat flour

- 45g (brown) sugar

- plum jam

Steps:

1. Break the chocolate into pieces and melt it on low heat in Bain Marie (Double boiler), stirring often. Add the diced butter.  Let it cool down.

2. Mix the sugar and eggs on high speed for a few minutes.

3. Add the chocolate and butter mix.

4. Add the flour and mix everything.

5. Preheat the oven at 180°C. 

6. Pour the dough into the muffin papers in the muffin tray.

7. Level and put some teaspoons of jam on top. Mix lightly enough to add a little sweetness to the dough.

8. Bake for 18 minutes (maximum). Bon appetit! :)

Nanaimo Bar

 

   Nanaimo Bar is a typical Canadian dessert that comes from the town with the same name. It's usually quite sweet, but reaaaally delicious! I decided to make it after presenting it as a typical dish for Christmas to my kids at the kindergarten. 

   Yeah, I know, it took me 2 months to actually get to making it, but hey, I did! :D And I really liked the result, too! 

   Being a non-bake dessert, it's very easy to make and I think anybody could do it, really! :D I stopped at a recipe with very high rating I found on Google (here's the link) and I halfed the recipe so that we could eat it in due time ^_^

Ingredients for about 15 pieces - 1/2 original recipe (depending on how big you cut them):

Bottom Layer:

- 55g unsalted butter, diced 

- 25g granulated sugar

- 15g unsweetened cocoa powder

- a pinch of salt

- 1 medium egg, lightly beaten

- 90g graham cracker crumbs 

- 38g walnuts (or almonds), finely chopped

- 40g shredded coconut

Filling

- 55g unsalted butter, softened

- 1-2 Tbsp heavy cream

- 2  Tbsp powdered milk and 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

- 100g powdered sugar

Top Layer

- 55g semi-sweet chocolate, chopped

- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter

Steps:

1. Line a small baking tray with parchment paper and set aside.

2. For the first layer: Melt butter in large heat proof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water set over medium-low heat.

3. Remove from heat, add in sugar, cocoa powder and salt and whisk until well combined. While whisking vigorously, very slowly pour in beaten egg in a thin stream.

4. Return mixture to heat and cook until mixture has just thickened.

5. Remove from heat and add in graham cracker crumbs, coconut, and almonds and toss until evenly coated.

6. Press mixture into prepared baking dish. (It's better to fill only half of a baking tray if you notice the layer would otherwise be super thin.) Chill while preparing the filling, bottom layer shouldn't be warm when adding the custard frosting layer.

7. For the second layer: add the powdered milk and the heavy cream to the bowl of an electric stand mixer. Whisk vigorously to dissolve powdered milk. Add in butter, powdered sugar and vanilla, set mixer with paddle attachment and beat mixture until very light and fluffy.

8. Spread mixture into an even layer over bottom layer. Chill preferably in the freezer while melting chocolate (otherwise the warm chocolate can melt this layer).

9. For the third layer: Melt semi-sweet chocolate along with butter in a heat proof bowl, set over a pot of simmering water until smooth.

10. Spread mixture into an even layer over filling layer (spread quickly before chocolate begins to set). Chill until chocolate has set.

11. Cut into squares (tip for best appearance, cut squares from side to side rather than cutting downward). Store in an airtight container in refrigerator, bring to room temperature before serving. Bon appetit!