Category Archives: Miniature & individual desserts

Palets bretons (Sweet and Salty Brittany Cookies)

paletspp

This was one of the first recipes I have posted. I hardly had any visitors at the time, so I have decided to dig it up and write about these French biscuits (or cookies). They may look ordinary, but their delicate crumbly texture, buttery taste and a delicate touch of saltiness make them very special.

“Palet” (pronounced without the final “t”) means a “puck” , and “jeu de palets” is a Brittany regional game with pucks which shape is similar to those used in hockey. Brittany is famous for its rich in butter sweets – usually made with salted butter – and one of those is a crumbly cookie, called “palet” in reference to its puck shape. They have a buttery taste, are slightly salty and sweet at the same time, very crumbly and melt in your mouth too quickly… Palets bretons are quite popular all around the country and can be found in every supermarket, but they are easy to prepare and obviously taste better baked at home.

Together with Crème brûlée palets are a good way to use up egg yolks (if you have made Coconut Cookies for example…or another dish calling for whites uniquely).

There are French internet recipes galore for these cookies. The one I tried for the first time and have always made with success comes the French blog Miamm…Maman Cuisine, where I also found the trick to keep their shape (see below).

TIPS: Click here to see a few ideas of how to use up the leftover egg whites.

You can sprinkle the cookies with coarse salt for an extra crunch and extra saltiness, but I don’t advise it for the first batch you prepare (you can test on one or two biscuits first).

Special equipment: muffins or similar size forms

Preparation: almost two hours (including 1 hour in the fridge)

Calories (the whole batch): about 1700 kcal

Ingredients for 12-15 pucks:

80g (about 3 oz) salted butter (or unsalted butter+1/2 teaspoon salt, but salty butter is better)

80 g (about 3 oz) confectioner’s sugar

140g (about 5 oz) flour

1/3 small package of baking powder (1 1/2 heaped teaspoon)

2 yolks

(coarse good quality sea salt)

Mix the yolks and the sugar well in a food processor. Add the softened butter, mix again.

Add the flour and the baking powder.

Knead it for 5 minutes.

Form a thick sausage (diameter=the bottom of one whole in a muffin form), wrap it in plastic film and put into the fridge for 1 hour (or more, until the dough becomes hard enough to be easily sliced).

Preheat the oven to 170°C.

Take the dough out of the fridge, unwrap it, cut into 1 cm (about 0,4 in) thick slices.

Put them inside the muffin forms (this way they’ll be more or less of equal size and will only rise instead of spreading around).

If you don’t have muffin forms or other cookie forms, simply put the cut cookies on a baking sheet, but at your own responsibility: they’ll probably spread around and become flatter than the ones “imprisoned” in a mould.

(You can sprinkle them with coarse salt for an extra salty crunch.)

Bake for 15-20 minutes till golden.

Rhubarb Kisiel (Warm Gooey Rhubarb Pudding)

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kisielp

This is one of the most extraordinary things that can be made with rhubarb. The tangy fresh flavours, the pink hue and, most of all, the addictive gooey consistency make this pudding one of my favourite spring sweet treats. One of the rare desserts I prefer when still warm.

Probably a majority of my dear readers have never even heard of kisiel, so I will start with the explanation. Kisiel (pronounced “kishyel”) is a very popular Polish pudding, made with fruit soft drinks or whole fruits with water (and nowadays, alas, most people buy its powdered instant versions…). It is thickened with potato starch (hence the gooey consistency), served warm or cold and usually has a fresh, tangy note. Its unique texture – vaguely reminiscent of Lemon Curd - is as important for me as its flavour. It is a very light, fat-free pudding that can easily be made even lighter if you use a sweetener instead of sugar.

I have learnt only recently that similar fruit dishes exist for example in Germany, Estonia, Lithuania or Finland, but sometimes they mean slightly thickened soft drinks and not puddings. When I saw a Finnish Rhubarb Kiisseli recipe in my Moomins Cookbook (for those of you who don’t know it yet, I am particularly fond of Moomin characters; I have already mentioned this book here), this discovery gave me the idea to include the Moomin family into the photo. The beautiful tray you see above was one of the most touching presents I have ever been offered. I was completely blown away when I received it from my dear friend Charles (from Five Euro Food), who bought it during one of his trips to Sweden. This tray, my infallible mood improver, was perfect to serve kisiel, since both bring back my childhood memories. Thank you so much again, Charles, for your thoughtful kind gesture.

Since all this has put me in a happy “Moomin” mood, here is the cartoon’s theme song:

Even though the Finnish kiisseli was my inspiration for this post, I have used my own old recipe which is a bit different. I prefer to have this pudding warm, but it can also be served cold.

If you feel like playing with rhubarb, you might like this quick and easy Rhubarb Soft Drink (which by the way is the first step of this pudding’s instructions):

or this refreshing Wobbly Rhubarb Delight I made with agar agar (kanten), and which, I insist, is not a jelly, but a less dense, incredibly light dessert:

TIPS: Potato starch thickening properties can vary, so you might need to adjust its amount during the cooking process. Start with the below amount and if after 3-4 minutes of cooking, the texture is still too liquid, dissolve one more tablespoon starch in a glass with two tablespoons of cold water and add to the pan, constantly stirring (see the instructions below).

This pudding can be served both warm and cold, but I prefer it warm. Taste both to choose your favourite way.

BEWARE! Do not eat or cook rhubarb leaves! They are toxic. Only stalks are edible.

Preparation: 1about 40-50 if you need to prepare the Rhubarb Soft Drink, 15 – 20 min if you already have it

Ingredients (serves four):

500 g (about 1 lb) fresh rhubarb, leaves removed, stalks cut into 2-3 cm pieces (about 1 inch)

2 litres (4 cups) water

sugar or sweetener

4 slightly heaped tablespoons potato starch

First prepare the rhubarb soft drink (if you already have it, skip this step).

Put the rhubarb into a big pan with water.

Bring to a boil at medium heat and cook until the rhubarb completely softens.

Strain while still hot, put aside and wait until the rhubarb drink cools to the room temperature. (You can also prepare it in advance, refrigerate and follow the dessert instructions the following day or even two days afterwards).

Measure 1 liter (4 cups) rhubarb drink and pour it into a pan. (Do not throw away the remaining soft drink, which is delicious!).

Add sugar or sweetener to your taste.

Dissolve the potato starch in additional 4 tablespoons rhubarb drink (make sure it is no longer hot!).

Bring the rhubarb drink to a boil. Pour slowly the dissolved potato starch, constantly stirring.

Cook it until thickened (about 4 minutes).

If your pudding is still liquid after four minutes, put the pan aside.

Dissolve one more tablespoon in 1 tablespoon cold rhubarb drink or water and add it to the pan, stirring. Heat, constantly stirring until it thickens.

Serve warm or cold.

Light Crème Brûlée (Light Burnt Cream)

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cremebruleep

Even though most people consider crème brûlée (or burnt cream) a typically French dessert, British sources often cite Trinity College, Cambridge, as the place where it first appeared at the end of the XIXth century. The famous British food writer, Jane Grigson, says (in her excellent English Food) she has come across burnt cream recipes in several ancient English cookery books, some dating back to the XVIIth century. The French claim to be the inventors and also cite a XVIIth century (1691) book “Le Cuisinier royal et bourgeois” by François Massialot as the first occurrence of crème brûlée. The doubt of the origins will probably always haunt both sides of the Channel, but whatever the origins, crème brûlée or burnt cream is an invention of a genius.

The recipe I share with you is the very first I used and certainly the last one, not because it is lighter (half milk, half cream), but because it produces the best crème brûlée I know. I found it in “Le Grand Livre de Cuisine d’Alain Ducasse: Bistrots, Brasseries et Restaurants de Tradition” written by one of the most renowned French chefs, who is also among the three most Michelin-starred in the world. Alain Ducasse is not any diet guru, the book has got nothing to do with any weight loss plans (see the title of his book!) and the recipe wasn’t labelled as lightened. It is simply excellent, elegantly fresh and as such didn’t need any explanations. The addition of milk also illustrates the way the traditional cuisine has been changing in hands of modern French chefs and confectioners, following the way our lifestyles and nutritious needs change, but wisely, i.e. without any taste compromise.

I have already posted this recipe a long time ago, but I thought it merits to be mentioned again, especially since now I know I’m not the only one blogger who looks for lighter desserts and also because some of my friends have recently been trying to lighten their eating habits

If you feel like playing with this classic dessert, I strongly recommend this refreshing and amazing matcha crème brûlée, my second favourite:

TIPS: Blowtorch is a very good investment since, at least from my experience, it’s impossible to obtain the contrasting textures and temperatures crème brûlée is famous for with an oven broiler (the cream warms up). You can use blowtorch on many other custardy desserts and sweet tarts.

Click here for a few ideas of how to use up the leftover egg whites.

If you don’t have brown cane sugar, you can use caster sugar to burn, but the taste is worse.

If you want to prepare a smaller batch (serving max. 4 people), divide the below amounts by two, but use 5 egg yolks.

If you travel to France and order burnt cream in an unknown restaurant, I would strongly advise asking if it’s burnt just before being served. I had several times an unpleasant surprise of soggy caramel and a uniform temperature in restaurants where the cream is burnt before the opening hours and sits for several hours in the fridge.

Special equipment: a blowtorch

Preparation: around 2 hours+a couple of hours in the fridge

Calories (the whole batch, made with skimmed milk, 25% fat cream and including the burnt sugar): about 3200 kcal

Ingredients (serves six – eight, depending on the size of the baking dishes; if you use the ones I did (8-9 cm diameter) you will obtain eight portions):

9 egg yolks

500 ml/17 oz milk

500 ml/17 oz liquid cream (min. 20% fat, without any thickeners)

4 vanilla pods

9 slightly heaped tablespoons caster sugar

about100 g/about 1/2 cup cane sugar (but not the moist one!)

Cut the vanilla pods lengthwise in two.

Put into a saucepan with milk and cream. Bring to the boil, put aside for 30 minutes.

Strain it. Scrape off the vanilla seeds and blend with milk and cream. The seeds are not necessary, but I think the cream looks nicer with small black spots.

Preheat the oven at 100°C.

Mix the yolks with sugar in a big bowl. Pour the warm (not hot!) milk with cream over it and mix again.

Pour the mixture into burnt cream dishes or other small individual ramekins.

Bake it for approximately 45 minutes. (The custards are ready when only their centres are slightly trembling when moved).

Take out the creams and let them cool down. Put into the fridge for several hours.

Just before serving, take the creams out of the fridge and pat dry with paper towel (there will be some water drops on top and it will make the burning difficult).

Sprinkle with dark cane sugar and caramelise it with a special blowtorch.

Serve immediately while the top is still warm and crunchy and the cream below is very cold.

ANZAC Biscuits with Dried Cranberry

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Have you ever heard of ANZAC biscuits? Many of you might be put off by the above unequally shaped, unattractive cookies, but in reality these are one of the most delicious and addictive sweet snacks I know. Until now I have been preparing only their standard version and I wish I had thought of cranberries earlier because I liked them this way even more.

ANZAC stands for “Australian and New Zealand Army Corps”, created during the World War I and these biscuits were created at the same time by women desperate to send nutritious home-made food to their husbands, sons and boyfriends. According to this website, faced with at least two months’ transportation time, a group of women worked out a recipe based on rather healthy Scottish rolled oats biscuits and added only those ingredients which ensured long preservation. There are several theories on why eggs are not used, but their absence certainly makes biscuits last longer.

The first time I baked these biscuits (see the recipe here), I was inspired and encouraged by Mr. Three-Cookies, the cookie and biscuit specialist from Three-Cookies blog, where I found the recipe (actually at Easily Good Eats by the same author). Before tasting ANZAC biscuits for the first time I expected ordinary, but good crunchy biscuits, with a healthy twist, i.e. oats. What I obtained was well beyond my hopes: slightly crunchy, slightly chewy, addictive sweet snacks with a very pleasant buttery taste, enhanced by baked nutty oats. In short, the mixture of such simple ingredients has created a complex, surprising result I am still fond of, after dozens of batches.

ANZAC biscuits have always been so satisfactory, I haven’t even bothered to modify the basic recipe. However, a couple of days ago, the beautiful Cranberry Coconut Quinoa Loaves posted by Kelly (from Inspired Edibles) convinced me that dried cranberries are a perfect pairing for coconut and this is how I had the idea to tweak my usual recipe. The experiment was a big success, at least for a big fan of chewy cookies like me (the cranberries’ presence has at least tripled the chewiness!). The flat rounded, more or less equal shape was more difficult to obtain with dried fruit inside, but then I’m not a very meticulous cook… Thank you so much, Kelly for such a wonderful inspiration; cranberries and coconut are an excellent pairing, definitely worth further explorations. Thank you again, Mr. Three-Cookies, for making me discover the world of ANZAC biscuits.

If you don’t like or have cranberries, I strongly advise testing the classic recipe first (or simply follow the below recipe eliminating cranberries):

If you are fond of coconut sweets, you might like these too:

Easiest Chewy Coconut Cookies (aka Macaroons)

Coconut, Chocolate and Rum Truffles

Moist Chocolate and Coconut Cake

or the above Moist Coconut Cake but without chocolate

Coffee and Coconut Cream with Agar

Light Chocolate and Coconut Cream (also with agar)

or Matcha and Coconut Cream with Agar

If you want to play with the basic ANZAC recipe, Mr. Three-Cookies has frequently (and successfully) experimented with these amazing biscuits, so check his Three Cookies blog for inspiration.

TIPS: Unless you have a health problem, do not use margarine or any other vegetable shortening. The butter taste and aroma is so strong, you will lose a big part of the pleasure.

As I have mentioned above, they keep fresh in a tightly closed container for several days (and maybe even more, but I wasn’t able to test more than five days). The biscuits stay crunchy and slightly chewy.

Do not expect vivid red spots on your biscuits: the cranberries will darken during the baking process (the ones you see above are just meant to add a touch of colour to the dark biscuits.)

WARNING: do not taste the raw dough! You will end up eating it straight from the pan while you wait for your previous batch to bake.

Preparation: 1 hour (or 30 minutes if you manage to bake everything in one batch)

Ingredients (I have obtained about 35 biscuits, you will obtain a bit less if you skip cranberries):

70 grams/1 cup rolled oats

90 grams/1 cup desiccated coconut

120 g/1 cup flour

125 g/about 4,5 oz butter

160 g/3/4 cup brown cane sugar

1 tablespoon dark syrup (I used 2 tablespoons molasses)

1 teaspoon baking soda (bi-carbonate of soda, in countries where it is not widely available, for example in France, it can be easily bought in pharmacies)

2 tablespoons boiling water

6 heaped tablespoons dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Melt the butter and syrup or molasses in a big pan.

Combine the flour, the oats, the coconut, the cranberries and the sugar. Add slowly to the melted butter.

At the end combine the boiling water and soda. Pour the mixture into the dough and stir well with a spoon.

Roll small balls (I usually make walnut-sized balls, but this time I wanted smaller biscuits, so I made the balls 1/3 smaller) and put them on a baking sheet (leaving at least 3 cm spaces between each ball since they will spread).

Flatten them slightly (they will flatten even more during the baking process) and bake 10-15 minutes or until golden.

Don’t worry if the dough seems crumbly. It is normal. Just squeeze well the dough when forming balls in your hands and don’t flatten them too much.

Keep them in a tightly closed container. Apparently they keep for ages. All I know is they keep for at least five days, well closed.

Easter Party Ideas

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Wonton Cups, or Edible Snack Containers

Zsuzsa, my blogging friend from Zsuzsa is in the Kitchen, has recently invited me to join her and other bloggers (Eva from Takarékos Konyha, Elisabeth from Food and Thrift and Eva from Kitchen Inspirations) and, just like them, post my Easter menu suggestions. I was honoured, but at first I panicked because apart from a Chicken Terrine (see below) I don’t really have traditional Easter dishes on my blog. Both Zsuzsa and Elisabeth have convinced me to present whatever I might serve for such an occasion, even if it is not traditional in any country or region of the world. Thank you, ladies, for your advice! Thus, I have chosen some festive dishes I love, regardless their origins or relation to Easter celebrations. Thank you so much, Zsuzsa, for your kind invitation. I hope my eclectic choice, far from Easter traditions will not disappoint you.

Here is a list of dishes I would take into consideration if I had guests for Easter (of course I wouldn’t serve all of them!). All of them can be served at a buffet-style party, my recent favourite way to entertain. Such a concept usually means more work beforehand because, contrary to traditional meals, one cannot serve just three dishes, but this way I offer a bigger choice to the guests, who are not forced to eat all they are served, but most of all such a party has a more relaxed atmosphere. Apart from one exception, I have chosen easy recipes, which either can be prepared very quickly or made in advance. They have both Western and Asian origins, so I hope you will find here some useful ideas, not necessarily for Easter.

First of all, I would never skip the obligatory Wonton Cups, or Edible Snack Containers (see the photo above). Versatile, cute and easy, these edible containers are nowadays a staple not only when I have guests (thank you, Juliana!).

Last-minute Crackers can be prepared really just before the guests arrive as long as you have some puff pastry in the fridge. These star-shaped crackers were prepared for Christmas, but you can give them any shape you wish, such as bunnies…

These olives are so easy to prepare you will never consider buying them seasoned by someone else again.

This Smoked Mackerel and Egg Spread can be prepared with any smoked fish of your choice, of course.

Recently discovered Taramosalata (Fish Roe Spread) is one more thing I will never ever even think of buying. Home-made version is incomparably better.

Light Chicken Terrine with Nutmeg is actually the only dish I used to have as a child for Easter and other festive occasions.

Savoury Cake with Goat Cheese and Dried Tomatoes (aka Goat Cheese and Dried Tomatoes Bread) is a wonderful alternative to canapés.

Cake with Ham and Olives, another canapés substitution, is a real crowd-pleaser.

If you feel like serving Japanese food (why not?), try preparing Maki Sushi with Shrimp, Avocado and Cucumber. They will not necessarily look as perfect as in your sushi shop, but they are really easy to prepare.

Spring Rolls with Leftover Roast and Carrots, an Asian sandwich alternative, can also be prepared with the remains of your roast, after the Easter holidays.

Sesame-Coated Chicken Nuggets (Tori no goma age) can be made in advance and will please all the sesame fans.

Japanese Chicken and Leek Skewers (Negima) are brushed with teriyaki glaze and usually please every guest.

Asparagus Teriyaki Pork Rolls are incredibly easy to prepare and are one of my favourite ways to serve asparagus.

Unbaked chocolate Cake with Biscuits (Chocolate Terrine with Speculoos) is a rich creamy dessert which doesn’t require baking and is incredibly simple to prepare.

Coconut, Chocolate and Rum Truffles (Bounty Truffles). Who doesn’t like chocolate truffles?

Matcha and White Chocolate Truffles are the only ones which might be tricky to prepare, but they are green, fresh, festive and have this amazing slightly bitter matcha flavour…

Chocolate and prunes are all you need to prepare these luscious Prunes in Chocolate, a quicker and easier alternative to chocolate truffles.

This Kiwi and Rum Cocktail seemed perfect for a spring party.

I strongly encourage you to check the wonderful Easter menu suggestions proposed by my blogging friends and would like to wish you all a very happy Easter and wonderful holidays to those who don’t celebrate it!

Light Unbaked Cheesecake with Passion fruit

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passioncheesep

Bored with lemons, oranges, apples and pears, I decided to experiment with something more exotic and discovered a new passion for the… passion fruit. Passion fruit macarons are one of my beloved Pierre Hermé’s creations, passion fruit chocolates are made by many chocolatiers in my city, passion fruit daiquiri is one of my favourite cocktails… and yet, I have never tried making a passion fruit dessert on my own. This first attempt felt like uncovering a whole new world of exciting culinary adventures. Topping a simple unbaked cheesecake with passion fruit pulp cannot really be called elaborate work in the kitchen, but it proved one of the most astonishing experiments I have ever made. The powerful, irresistible fragrance, the tangy flavour and crunchy seeds paired with the creamy, silky cheesecake created a complex and unusual combination. Since it was also one of the easiest and quickest sweet treats I know, I predict a bright future for this wonderful match, at least until strawberries appear.

I have already shared with you my enthusiasm about the unbaked cheesecake (see below). It becomes a staple in my house, especially when the weather gets warm and light, refreshing desserts are more welcome. I haven’t written about it for quite a long time, so here is a quick explanation of the unbaked cheesecakes I prepare. My unbaked – and also baked – cheesecakes have both Polish origins, i.e. they are not made with North American cream cheese, but with natural fresh cheese (called curd cheese, quark or fromage frais). In the unbaked version this cheese is very smooth and can easily be substituted with Greek yogurt, similar in both taste and texture.

Apart from the taste, the main reason why I prepare unbaked cheesecakes so often is their healthy side: contrary to the North American-style cheesecakes, these are low-fat, low-calorie and, I think, can be proposed to people on a slimming diet. I also love them for their instantly recognisable, slightly tangy taste and a light texture, close to a very dense mousse. In my opinion the basic unbaked cheesecake preparation (cheese, gelatin and sugar) is an excellent basis to play with different fruits, aromatic alcohols, spices and other seasonings (some cover them with a thick layer of fruit jelly, the item I have never liked). Many people prepare also a crust, but since I don’t like it in either baked or unbaked cheesecakes, I always omit it. Thanks to this my cheesecakes are even lighter and quicker to prepare. This slightly acid passion fruit version was excellent, but if you don’t like tangy sweets (or passion fruit), you might want to try other versions instead:

Unbaked Strawberry Cheesecake in a Glass

Unbaked Blueberry Cheesecake in a Glass

Unbaked Vanilla Cheesecake

If you are a fan of passion fruit (or passionfruit), you might like this delicious cocktail:

Passion fruit daiquiri

TIPS: This cheesecake can be made in one big mould lined with plastic film, and then sliced into portions like a baked cheesecake, but I find individual portions easier to handle and much cuter when served.

You can of course prepare any baked or unbaked crust of your choice.

Preparation: 15 minutes + 2 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (serves 4-5):

500 g (about 17 oz) very smooth (mixed) fresh cheese/curd cheese/quark/fromage frais or Greek yogurt

2 tablespoons gelatin (or 6 – 8 sheets, depending on the brand, so take the amount necessary to set 500 ml/17 fl oz of liquid))

4 tablespoons warm water (I prefer to use hot water with powdered gelatin)

4 flat tablespoons confectioner’s sugar or sweetener of your choice

(2 tablespoons rum)

(white chocolate)

Dissolve the gelatin in 4 tablespoons warm or hot (not boiling) water. (If using leaves, proceed as indicated on the package).

Mix the cheese, the rum and the sugar in a food processor.

Add the dissolved gelatin and mix once more.

Pour the cheese mixture into individual bowls or glasses and put into the fridge for at least two hours.

Just before serving cut the passion fruits in two and pour the flesh over the cheesecakes (1 small or 1/2 big passion fruit per glass).

You can sprinkle them with grated white chocolate.

Light Coconut Agar Cream with Pear and Lime Zest

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cocopoire

The last couple of days have been so warm and sunny, I don’t even care if they announce snow for next week. Spring is in the air and nothing will change it. The spring evoking exquisite, bright green matcha latte posted by Kelly (from Inspired Edibles) has inspired me to begin the season of refreshing, light desserts. I found some dying pears at the bottom of my fridge and instead of a cake or tart, I decided to incorporate them into the easiest and quickest light dessert I know.

Some of you might remember my discovery of a wobbly, creamy dessert based on two milks (coconut and cow milk) and agar. This discovery has changed into a real addiction and I must have already prepared dozens of batches. The basic mixture is extremely versatile, sets quickly (agar sets at room temperature) and, since I put a tiny amount of sugar or sometimes even only sweetener, it’s one of the lightest desserts I know. I have already experimented many different versions, such as chocolate, coffee or matcha (see below). Even though agar is a jelling agent, I use it in scarce amounts and obtain a slightly wobbly, “falling off the spoon” consistency, rather than a well-set jelly, hence the name “cream”.

My first plan was to cut up the pears and simply pour the cream over them (just like I did with canned peaches here). It seemed however a bit boring (especially visually), so I decided to grate some lime zest on top for decoration and… it was a revelation! As silly as it may sound, it was the first time I have combined pear with lime zest and I found it extraordinary. The mellow, “flat” sweetness of the pear and coconut suddenly becomes exciting with the tangy, refreshing and slightly bitter zest. I am very tempted to explore further this surprising combination, at least until summer fruits appear.

As a reminder, agar (“kanten” in Japanese) is a gelatinous substance obtained from certain seaweed varieties, usually sold powdered or (in Asian countries) in long sticks. Look for it in Asian grocery shops or in organic (health-food) shops or… in normal supermarkets (they sell it in my Swiss supermarkets). Even though some people say agar-agar is a gelatin equivalent, I cannot agree with it. The way it sets food is different from the gelatin I have been using for years and, if you buy it powdered, only a tiny amount is required. When used in scarce amounts, agar yields a creamy, wobbly, delicate result, but when a big amount is used, it sets the food stronger than gelatin, so it’s a bit tricky when used for the first time.

If you feel like experimenting with agar, here are some ideas you might like:

Wobbly Rhubarb Delight

Light Chocolate and Coconut Cream

Matcha and Coconut Cream with Agar

Light Coconut Cream with Canned Peaches

Coffee and Coconut Cream with Agar

TIPS: Look closely at your agar package instructions. On mine 1/2 teaspoon is said to set 500 ml/2 cups liquid to a jelly. I use only 1/3 teaspoon and obtain a wobbly, “falling off the spoon” consistency. If you prefer a well-set jelly, use the amount advised on the package.

Do not wait until the cream becomes cold before pouring it into the bowls because agar sets at room temperature and once disturbed, it will not reset properly!

Preparation: 15 minutes + 2-3 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (serves 4 – 5):

250 ml coconut milk

250 ml cow milk

4 flat tablespoons sugar (or less, if, like me you prefer moderately sweet desserts; I have put only 2 tablespoons)

1/3 flat teaspoon agar agar in powder

3 medium pears

2 – 3 limes

Dissolve the sugar and agar-agar in the mixture of the two milks. Bring to boil and, constantly stirring, let it simmer for about a minute.

Put aside.

Prepare four individual bowls or low glasses.

Peel the pears and cut them up into cubes.

Distribute them equally into the bowls. (Do not wait until the cream becomes cold because agar sets at room temperature and once disturbed, it will not reset properly).

Pour the milks’ mixture into the bowls and refrigerate for at least two hours.

Serve very cold decorated with grated lime zest (you can also incorporate it into the dessert, before it sets, but it won’t have the same freshness).

Coconut, Chocolate and Rum Truffles (Bounty Truffles)

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bountytrufflespj

As soon as I think about the approaching Christmas, I feel like making truffles. I am always planning to offer them as edible presents and… finally end up eating most of them on my own (although I did manage to offer some Prunes in Chocolate last year!). Last week I was looking for something new and browsing through cooking blogs I finally found on this wonderful blog the inspiration I was looking for: Bounty truffles. Unable to stick to almost any sweet recipe, I have modified this one too, mainly replacing butter and sugar with white chocolate, switching to dark chocolate and using real rum.

After all these changes I found the result surprisingly successful (even though my truffles are far from looking as neat and perfect as the original). If you share my passion for coconut and dark chocolate, you will certainly love them. The rum adds a certain lightness, freshness and elegance you shouldn’t refuse these otherwise homely, rich sweet treats. Therefore I want to emphasize that unless you hate rum or cannot consume alcohol (I don’t talk about those who get drunk easily because 2 tablespoons alcohol in 20 truffles wouldn’t affect even the weakest head), do not skip it!

If you are not fond of the above mixture of flavours, you might like some of these:

Matcha, White Chocolate and Oat Truffles

Matcha and White Chocolate Truffles

Prunes in Chocolate

Thrifty Truffles

TIPS: Melting dark chocolate here might prove difficult for those who have never made it. There are several methods: microwaving, melting in a hot water bath and simple melting in a pan over very low heat. My favourite is the latter. I break the chocolate into pieces, in a small pan, on very low heat, constantly stirring. The important thing is not to let the chocolate boil. Take the pan off the heat before the chocolate melts completely (I usually wait until 90% of chocolate melts) and keep on stirring. It will melt in the already warm melted remaining chocolate and this way you will avoid bringing chocolate to a boiling point, which makes it impossible to use. I usually melt butter this way together with chocolate.

The above method doesn’t work for everyone though (it’s easy to boil the chocolate and spoil it), so you might want to try the safer method recently mentioned here by A_Boleyn: put the broken chocolate into a metal bowl. Place it over a pan of boiling water. Turn off the heat and stir the chocolate vigorously until it melts.

Melting in a microwave consists of doing it in several short stages, but the details depend on the chocolate amount and the microwave you use (Eva does it in several 15-second stages).

(White chocolate is melted here together with cream, see below).

If you want to sprinkle the truffles with coconut, moist them slightly with water and the sprinkled coconut will stick.

Preparation: 20 minutes + 2-3 hours

Ingredients (yields about 20 truffles):

100 ml/about 3,5 oz cream (at least 18 % fat)

100 g/about 3,5 oz white chocolate

2 cups/500 ml desiccated coconut

100 g/about 3,5 oz dark or milk chocolate (whichever you use, choose a good quality product; it will make a huge difference)

2 tablespoons rum

Pour the cream to a small pan.

Break the white chocolate into pieces and throw into the cream.

Heat the mixture of cream and chocolate on very low heat, constantly stirring until the chocolate is dissolved. (Do not overcook!)

Put aside.

Add the rum, the coconut and mix well.

Put into the fridge for 30 minutes until the mixture becomes very cold and easier to handle.

Form truffles, rolling them delicately on the inside of your palms.

Put them back into the fridge, placing them on baking paper (so that they don’t stick).

After 1 hour take the truffles out of the fridge.

Melt the dark or milk chocolate (see TIPS above).

Dip each coconut truffle in a bowl with melted chocolate and put back on the baking paper.
Refrigerate for at least one hour.

Financiers with Raspberries

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Financiers count among the biggest wonders in the world of pastry. Few ingredients, simple preparation and marvellous, sophisticated result. I have already written about them quite a long time ago (here), but this new summer fruit version turned out so good, I absolutely wanted to share it with you. As I have written in my old post, Financiers are one of the most famous French pastry items and a pure delight for almond fans. They contain almost no flour, but mainly butter, powdered almonds, egg whites and sugar, so you can imagine how intense the almond taste is.

Baked since the Middle Ages by French nuns of the Visitation of Mary, at first they were not called financiers and had an oval form. Then, for a certain time they were forgotten and around 1890, Lasne, a Parisian confectioner, revived the recipe. Since his shop was close to the stock market and financiers were his regular clients, he named the cakes “financiers” and transformed their form into the one recalling a gold lingot, probably thinking they appealed more to his clients. I usually make my financiers in muffin forms, but this time somehow the rectangular shape seemed more appropriate.

Financiers have different versions and raspberry addition seems quite popular, especially in the summer. When I decided to add the fruits I was worried that their acidity might spoil the perfect harmony of the Financiers. Luckily I was wrong. Raspberries bring a subtle tangy note, but they disturb neither the Financiers’ extremely soft, mouth-melting consitency nor their sophisticated taste. I encourage everyone to try this version before raspberries disappear from market stalls.

My recipe comes from Leçons de cuisine de l’école Ritz-Escoffier . The only thing I have modified is the sugar amount (70 g instead of the original 85g).

TIPS: Financiers are very easy to prepare and are an excellent occasion to use up egg whites. Finding powdered (not only ground) almonds might be difficult. I always buy ground almonds and sift them through a sieve. The leftover, big bits of ground almonds are excellent to prepare the even easier Thumbprint Almond Cookies (see the recipe here) or Kings’ Pie (Galette des Rois), which is also a good way to use up two yolks, leftover from this small batch of Financiers…

Click here for some ideas of using the remaining egg yolks.

The only tricky part is taking the financiers out of the forms. They should be cold and handled delicately.

Preparation: 30 minutes

Ingredients (for 6 muffin forms or rectangular, similarly sized forms or 12 mini-muffin shaped forms):

50 g (about 1,8 oz) powdered almonds

70 g (about 2,5 oz) sugar

50 g (about 1,8 oz) butter

2 egg whites

1 heaped tablespoon flour

a pinch of salt

12 raspberries

Preheat the oven to 190°C.

Prepare the “beurre noisette” (lit. hazelnut butter): heat the butter in a pan on a low heat and observe the milk solids, which will separate at the bottom. When they become light brown (hazelnut colour), put the pan aside.

Combine the egg whites, the sugar, the almond powder, the pinch of salt and the flour in a big bowl. Add gradually the butter, mixing with a spoon.

Pour the mixture into greased – with butter – muffin or rectangular forms (or other small cakes forms) 2/3 of their height.

Place two raspberries in each financier.

Bake for about 15 – 20 minutes until golden.

Let them cool down before taking out of the forms.

Coffee and Coconut Cream with Agar

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coffeecoconutcreamp

A cooling, light coconut dessert and a cup of strong coffee in one. This is probably the best description of the cream I have been enjoying during this summer’s hot weekends. I have almost forgotten to post this recipe, but first I saw MJ’s spicy Mayan Iced Coffee, then Zsuzsa’s extravagant chocolatey Iced Coffee, which both reminded me of this refreshing sweet treat. I thought that sunny August days might be the last chance to share it with you this year.

It has been a long time since I last reported on my experiments with coconut cream set with agar (see below). This doesn’t mean however that I have stopped them. The simplicity and quickness of the basic recipe makes it ideal for infinite modifications. Such different versions as Coconut Cream with Peaches, Chocolate and Coconut Cream or Matcha and Coconut Cream all turned out amazingly good. Emboldened by coconut milk’s capacity to blend with diverse ingredients, I dared mixing it with coffee and never regretted this test. Coconut milk proved once more that, if correctly dosed, it creates an astonishing, but harmonious combination. This cream was as light as the ones I have mentioned above, but the generous amount of coffee I have included gave it an additional, energising property and made me think of a strong, cold iced coffee. Sprinkled with bitter cocoa and some dessicated coconut, it was a pure delight for the big fan of coffee I am. If I had coffee liqueur I would probably add a splash of it.

As a reminder, agar (agar agar or kanten) is a gelling agent made with seaweed. It’s available in Asian grocery shops, in organic food shops and in Switzerland also in standard supermarkets. It is not a gelatin replacement and creates a slightly different texture. Here are some other desserts where I have used agar and appreciated it:

Matcha and Coconut Cream with Agar

Wobbly Rhubarb Delight

Light Chocolate and Coconut Cream

Light Coconut Cream with Canned Peaches

Even if prepared with sugar, this dessert is light, but if you want to make it lighter, you can use a sweetener suitable for cooking.

Instant coffee can be substituted with very strong small espresso. If you decide to use the latter, make it as small as possible and reduce accordingly the amount of cow milk.

Try adding a splash of coffee liqueur if you have some. I’m sure it makes the cream more elegant and festive.

Do not wait until the cream becomes cold before pouring it into glasses because agar sets at room temperature and once disturbed, it will not reset properly!

Preparation: 15 minutes + 2-3 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (serves 4 – 5):

250 ml/about 1 cup coconut milk

250 ml/about 1 cup cow milk

4 flat tablespoons sugar (I used two flat tablespoons sweetener suitable for cooking)

1/3 flat teaspoon agar agar in powder

5 flat tablespoons instant coffee (I have used Nescafé Espresso)

(a splash of coffee liqueur)

(dessicated coconut and bitter cocoa to sprinkle before serving)

Combine alle the ingredients in a pan (apart from the dessicated coconut and cocoa).

Bring to boil on low heat and, constantly stirring, let it simmer for about a minute.

Put aside.

Prepare four individual bowls or low glasses.

Pour the hot mixture into the individual bowls (agar sets at room temperature, so the cream’s temperature should be higher before it is poured; make sure it is not too hot and doesn’t break the bowls or glasses). Let it cool down to room temperature and refrigerate for at least two hours.

Serve very cold sprinkled with coconut and bitter cocoa.

Unbaked Blueberry Cheesecake in a Glass

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blueberrycheesep

I hope you are not bored with my desserts in glasses. I simply cannot help it: it’s hot and instead of cakes or biscuits, I crave fruity, light, refreshing – and most of all easy – desserts just like this one and am tempted to experiment with different seasonal fruits, hence this blueberry version of my Strawberry Cheesecake. When writing about the Strawberry Cheesecake in a Glass I said it was supposed to be prepared with fresh cheese (also called quark). I know now that some of you have difficulties in finding it, so I would like to emphasize here once more that such a dessert can very well be made with cream cheese used in North America in regular cheesecakes. Such a version will not be as light in terms of fat and calories (unless you use low-fat cheese), but I’m sure it will satisfy all the fans of cream cheese. (By the way, I would love to hear from you what the cream cheese version tastes like). UPDATE: Having recently discovered the Greek yogurt (apparently easily available in Northern America), I must add that it would be the best substitution for the quark/fresh cheese.

Even though this is only a slight modification of the Strawberry Cheesecake, thanks to the presence of blueberries, which lack the strawberry’s acidity, this dessert is not tangy and gives an impression of a much bigger creaminess both in taste and texture. I did add some lemon juice because I like to feel some tanginess, but it’s absolutely not necessary.

UPDATE & TIP: Instead of quark/fromage blanc you an use Greek yogurt here (it’s a better option than cream cheese).

Preparation: 15 minutes + 2 – 3 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (serves 4-5):

400 g (about 14 oz) fresh cheese (quark, fromage blanc) or Greek yogurt (or cream cheese)

3 tablespoons gelatin (or 8 sheets)

400 g (about 14 oz) blueberries

4 flat tablespoons confectioner’s sugar or sweetener of your choice

(2 tablespoons lemon juice if you like to feel some tanginess in your desserts)

(mint leaves for decoration)

Put aside 50-60 blueberries for the decoration.

Dissolve the gelatin in 4 tablespoons warm water. (If using leaves, proceed as indicated on the package).

Mix the cheese, the sugar, the lemon juice if using and the blueberries (apart from those left for the decoration) in a food processor.

Add the dissolved gelatin and mix once more.

Pour the cheese mixture into individual glasses/bowls and put into the fridge for at least two hours.

Decorate just before serving.

Matcha and Coconut Cream with Agar

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matchacoconutp

I am thrilled whenever I discover a simple recipe which is versatile enough to be modified eternally. Savoury recipes are of course much easier to fiddle with, but sometimes I find real versatile gems among the sweet ones too and the Coconut Cream I first prepared with Canned Peaches slowly proves to be one of them. Some of you might remember it was my first successful dessert prepared with agar (also called agar-agar or kanten), a gelling agent made with seaweed. The satisfying result encouraged me to carry on with agar experiments, but I must admit I didn’t suspect that the coconut cream would be versatile. Luckily I was wrong and the Light Chocolate and Coconut Cream, based on the same recipe, turned out a pure delight. Ping’s (Ping’s Pickings) gorgeous Mango Coconut Cream is another wonderful twist on this basic combination and even though I haven’t tasted it, I can well imagine how fabulous are the flavours.

The matcha version you see above has been on my mind for many weeks, but I hesitated. Matcha (抹茶), the Japanese powdered green tea, is one of the most fascinating products, but apart from successful outcomes (see below), I have experienced at least the same number of total failures, realising this is a particularly unpredictable ingredient. I haven’t made any web research about coconut and matcha pairing, so I had no idea if my experiment was risky or not, but I gave it a go and, as you have probably guessed, it was a big success.

First of all this cream is perfect for hot summer days. It is light and extremely cooling, thanks to the matcha’s subtle bitterness. Even though matcha’s flavours dominated, coconut cream was still discernible and I found the combination harmonious. Just like the above creams, the texture of this one was closer to a thick yogurt rather than a thick jelly and the preparation was quite easy (although this time, due to matcha’s dissolving issue, the cream had to be passed through a sieve). I highly recommend this dessert, but only to the fans of matcha’s unique, slightly bitter, “grassy” flavour or of course to those who are willing to discover it.

In case you are interested in matcha experiments, here are some other matcha desserts I have posted and enjoyed:

Matcha Crème Brûlée

Light Matcha Cream

Matcha and White Chocolate Truffles

Matcha, White Chocolate and Oat Truffles

Do not wait until the cream becomes cold before pouring it into individual serving dishes because agar sets at room temperature and once disturbed, it will not reset properly!

Preparation: 15 minutes + 2-3 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (serves 4 – 5):

250 ml/about 1 cup coconut milk

250 ml/about 1 cup cow milk

4 flat tablespoons sugar (as a fan of moderately sweet desserts I used two flat tablespoons)

1/3 flat teaspoon agar agar in powder

2 tablespoons matcha (heaped, if you are addicted to its grassy, bitter flavour)

(more matcha or dessicated coconut for decoration)

Mix the coconut milk, the cow milk and the matcha in a food processor.

Dissolve the sugar and agar-agar in the above mixture. Bring to boil on low heat and, constantly stirring, let it simmer for about a minute.

If matcha isn’t completely dissolved, pass it through a fine sieve and then bring back to boil. Boil for another minute.

Put aside.

Prepare four individual bowls or low glasses.

Pour the hot mixture into the individual bowls (agar sets at room temperature, so the cream’s temperature should be higher before it is poured; make sure it is not too hot and doesn’t break the bowls or glasses though). Let it cool down to room temperature and refrigerate for at least two hours.

Serve very cold sprinkled with coconut or more matcha.

Strawberry and Yogurt Mousse

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Light, refreshing, full of seasonal fruit, ridiculously easy and totally guiltless. In short, Strawberry and Yogurt Mousse is my kind of summer dessert. The funny thing is that I would have never discovered how extraordinary a yogurt mousse can be if I hadn’t run out of fresh cheese (also called quark), my old basis for strawberry mousse. For years I was convinced it was the lightest and the best strawberry mousse I could achieve and when the cooling desserts season arrived I would make sure the fresh cheese was in the fridge. I am glad I forgot to buy it last weekend and made this substitution. The yogurt version had a slightly lighter texture, the taste of strawberries was stronger, but otherwise the taste was similarly tangy and equally good. For the hundredth time since I started to cook I can confirm that necessity is the mother of invention! Moreover, thanks to this accidental modification I hope that this time I can recommend this mousse also to all my friends who don’t have access to fresh cheese, since yogurt seems to much more international.

Preparation: 10 minutes+ 2 – 3 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (serves 4):

250 g (about 1 cup) unsweetened natural yogurt

300 g (about 11oz) strawberries (hulled)

4 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar or sweetener (or no sugar if you prefer your mousse to be really tangy)

2 tablespoons gelatin in powder

(some strawberries for the decoration)

Mix the strawberries in a food processor or a blender. Add the sugar and the yogurt (remove the liquid floating on the surface). Mix once more.

Taste and add more sugar if needed.

Dissolve the gelatin in 4 tablespoons warm water.

Mix with the strawberry mixture.

Pour the mousse into serving dishes.

Put the mousse into the fridge for 2 -3 hours.

Serve very cold.

Quick Eggless Chocolate Mousse

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Even though this is certainly a delightful dessert, I will be honest and admit this is not my beloved chocolate mousse. My favourite one calls for twice as much ingredients, including raw eggs, requires lots of attention and at least 12 hours in the fridge. The above mousse was prepared on the spur of the moment and at first was supposed to be a simple, improvised chocolate cream. It requires only three hours, no eggs and is incredibly easy to prepare.

My idea was to melt dark chocolate, combine it with cream, maybe add a bit of sugar and let the whole dessert set in the fridge. When I took the cream out of the fridge I had a crazy idea: whip it! I say “crazy idea” because probably, just like me, most of you have heard and read hundreds of times that only cream with minimum 30% fat content can be whipped. I swear I have whipped 25% fat cream! The consistency was not as thick, the taste was lighter, the colour less yellowish, but it was whipped! Actually, as someone who is not a fan of whipped cream, I discovered this one was much more to my taste. It didn’t have this nauseous effect the fatter cream has on my palate and didn’t feel fatty. Since whipped cream I’m used to has 36% fat content, it is not surprising that the 11% have made quite a difference. Anyway, after whipping the cream I added some confectioner’s sugar, then cooled melted chocolate, put individual portions into the fridge and discovered after only three hours that my desserts were ready and tasted better than I hoped. Of course they were particularly enjoyable served with raspberries.

TIP: Depending on the chocolate brand and your sweetness preference, either add the sugar or skip it.

Preparation: 3h30 (including refrigeration time)

Ingredients (serves four):

250 ml (about 1 cup) liquid cream (at least 25% fat) or any whipping cream of your choice

150 g (about 5 1/2 oz) good quality dark chocolate

pinch of salt

4 flat tablespoons confectioner’s sugar

(raspberries)

Break the chocolate into pieces and melt it in a pan on a very low heat or in a water bath (stirring and watching it constantly so that it doesn’t burn) or in a microwave (if you microwave it, do it in two-three stages because once it’s “cooked”, it cannot be used).

Put aside and let it cool down.

Pour the cream into a high bowl, add the pinch of salt and whip it at medium speed.

When it’s almost ready, add the sugar and finish the whipping.

Combine delicately the chocolate with the whipped cream, adding the chocolate in two – three batches.

Make sure the mixture is homogeneous, divide into serving bowls or glasses and refrigerate for 3 hours.

Serve cold.

Unbaked Strawberry Cheesecake in a Glass

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Light, quick, easy and refreshing. I don’t know what are your preferences, but this is the description of my ideal spring or summer dessert and unbaked cheesecake meets all these conditions. Some of you might remember that my unbaked cheesecakes are made with fresh cheese (also called “quark”) and not the most popular cream cheese (see the Unbaked Vanilla Cheesecake here). They are low in fat, have a slight, refreshing tanginess I like and have a light consistency, comparable to a dense mousse. Since I don’t like the crust in cheesecakes, I always omit it, which makes such a dessert even lighter and quicker to prepare.

Unbaked cheesecakes are in my opinion an excellent basis to experiment with different fruits without losing their precious vitamins, nutrients and delicate aroma. If you decide to try fresh cheese, its slight tartness goes particularly well with red fruits such as strawberries. I realised it a couple of days ago when I decided to make my first strawberry dessert this year. Not only was it, quick, easy and practical (it requires only four ingredients), but most of all it enhanced and preserved all of the the strawberry flavours and its enticing aroma.

TIPS & UPDATE: If you don’t find fresh cheese (quark) the best option would be to use the Greek yogurt. If you are a cream cheese fan, this dessert can of course be prepared with cream cheese too, but the consistency will probably be less mousse-like and the taste different (I admit I haven’t made or tasted such a version).

Preparation: 15 minutes + 2 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (serves 4-5):

400 g (about 14 oz) fresh cheese/quark or Greek yogurt (or cream cheese if you don’t find quark or Greek yogurt)

2 tablespoons gelatin (or 8 sheets)

400 g (about 14 oz) strawberries

4 flat tablespoons confectioner’s sugar or sweetener of your choice

Put aside 4-5 strawberries for the decoration.

Dissolve the gelatin in 4 tablespoons warm water. (If using leaves, proceed as indicated on the package).

Mix the cheese, the sugar and half of the strawberries (200g) in a food processor.

Add the dissolved gelatin and mix once more.

Cut up the remaining strawberries in quarters (do not use those for the decoration!) and place them in individual glasses.

Pour the cheese mixture over the strawberries and put into the fridge for at least two hours.

Decorate just before serving.

Light Chocolate and Coconut Cream

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This chocolate cream is my second successful experiment with agar. I have followed the Light Coconut Cream with Canned Peaches recipe, simply substituting fruit with dark chocolate. Just like the Cream with Peaches, this one had a light, thick yogurt texture. Dark chocolate and coconut combination proved excellent and, thanks to the cow milk content, the coconut taste was tamed down, allowing the chocolate flavours prevail. Because of the chocolate’s presence I cannot say this cream was as low-calorie as the previous one, but it certainly was the lightest chocolate dessert I have ever had and, accidentally one of the most flavoursome too.

As a reminder, agar (agar-agar, “kanten” in Japanese) is a gelling agent very popular in Asia. Contrary to what one might think, this is not a gelatin substitute. It is prepared in a slightly different way and, most of all, gives different textures and consistencies. In Europe it is widely used in food industry and is quite popular among vegetarians, since agar is produced from seaweed (not bones, like gelatin). Apart from gelling properties, agar has considerable health benefits. It helps digestion and is often consumed as a slimming diet booster. A Japanese friend has confirmed what I had already read about: in her country some women dissolve it in tea to help digestion and to suppress appetite (I haven’t checked if it works on my appetite though).

In short, this cream is not only the lightest chocolate dessert I know; it is also probably the healthiest one. With dessicated coconut and shaved chocolate it has made me think of a light Bounty bar in a glass.

Do not wait until the cream becomes cold before pouring it into serving bowls or glasses because agar sets at room temperature and once disturbed, it will not reset properly!

Preparation: 15 minutes + 2-3 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (serves 4 – 5):

250 ml/about 1 cup coconut milk

250 ml/about 1 cup cow milk

4 flat tablespoons sugar (I used two flat tablespoons because I don’t like very sweet desserts)

1/3 flat teaspoon agar agar in powder

60 g/about 2,5 oz good quality dark chocolate, min 70% cocoa

(shaved chocolate, dessicated coconut)

Dissolve the sugar and agar-agar in the mixture of the two milks, add the chocolate broken into pieces. Bring to boil on low heat and, constantly stirring, let it simmer for about a minute. (If the chocolate isn’t completely dissolved, mix everything in a food processor and then bring back to boil).

Put aside.

Prepare four individual bowls or low glasses.

(Do not wait until the cream becomes cold because agar sets at room temperature and once disturbed, it will not reset properly!).

Pour the mixture into the bowls or glasses and refrigerate for at least two hours.

Serve very cold sprinkled with coconut and shaved chocolate.

Cannelés de Bordeaux

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Today I have a big honour to guest post at the wonderful Ping’s Pickings blog. Ping is one of my dearest blogging friends and one of the rare people who always make me laugh with her hilarious style and unique sense of humour. Thanks to Ping’s wide-ranging culinary interests, her posts are always surprising and often result in an amazing discovery, such as the excellent Coconut Pie, which under the name of Coconut Cake has become a staple in my house or the incredible Rum and Carrot Cocktail I have written about in my previous post. Since Ping is particularly fond of unusual patterns and originally shaped pastry (I still get hypnotised looking at these spirals), I have decided to write about cannelés de Bordeaux, hoping their cute shape brings a smile to Ping’s face.

Cannelés (or canelés) de Bordeaux are one of my favourite sweet treats and it would be difficult to say which aspect I appreciate the most. Their taste, aroma, texture and even the beautiful shape are all irresistible. I still remember the first time I tasted them. I loved their rich flavours and was totally blown away by their extraordinary, springy softness. As their name suggests, cannelés come from Bordeaux in France, but they are very popular all around the country and also become famous abroad (I have recently seen a Japanised version on Shizuoka Gourmet blog). Different sources quote different origins, but all agree that the characteristic shape, as well as the obligatory vanilla and rum presence are quite recent and date back to the beginning of the XXth century.

Cannelés are not really difficult, but they require patience, close attention during the long baking process, they do not accept shortcuts and every modification is a big risk. French websites, forums and blogs are full of cannelé recipes and related tips, but I must admit that I had to go through several failed experiments before I found a method that works with my oven and my silicone moulds. From my experience a big amount of rum as well as 24 hours refrigeration are necessary to obtain the optimum taste and texture. Apparently old-fashioned copper moulds guarantee the best results, but they are not easy to use and I am perfectly happy with the cannelés I obtain with very convenient silicone moulds. I have adapted my recipe from the one featured on Marmiton.

Please do not forget to check my post on Ping’s Pickings!

TIPS: Here are some ideas to use up 2 leftover egg whites you will be left with:

Chewy Coconut Cookies

Easy Chewy Hazelnut Cookies

Financiers

Scallops Fried in Nori

Sesame Crusted Chicken Nuggets

Preparation: 15 min + 24 hours in the fridge + about 1h30

Ingredients (makes 18-20 cannelés):

500 ml (2 cups) milk

25 g (a bit less than 1 oz) butter

pinch of salt

200 g (1 cup) sugar

100 g (about 3/4 cup) flour

100 ml (about 0,4 cup) white rum

1 vanilla pod (sliced in two, lengthwise)

2 eggs

2 egg yolks

In a big bowl combine the flour, the eggs, the yolks, the sugar and the salt.

Pour the milk into a pot, add the butter and the vanilla pod.

Bring to boil.

Pour the boiling milk mixture into the bowl and combine with the remaining ingredients, constantly stirring.

When the batter has cooled down, take out the vanilla pods and scrape off the grains into the bowl, discarding the empty pods.

Add the rum, give the batter a stir and put into the fridge (covered) for 24 hours.

The following day preheat the oven to 250°C.

Fill the baking moulds up with the cold batter to the 2/3 of the height.

(If you make several batches put the remaining batter back to the fridge).

Put the moulds to the oven immediately and bake at 250°C (480°F) for 10 minutes.

Lower the temperature to 180°C (350°F) and bake for 50-60 minutes (in the case of my oven it’s only 50 minutes).

Take the cannelés out of the oven and let them cool completely before removing from the mould.

They should be browned outside, but still soft inside.

Cannelés keep fresh for three days (or maybe more but I have never had a chance to check…).

Matcha, White Chocolate and Oat Truffles

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Yeast hates me. This is all I can say after another failure with this capricious baking ingredient. I love good home-made yeast cakes, but whenever I try making them at least one in three ends up in the bin, just like my yesterday’s attempt. I do not give up, of course, but such an incident is always a bit depressing, so, instead of starting another battle with yeast, I felt I needed to cheer myself up with something completely different.

Since I made Matcha and White Chocolate Truffles and have fallen in love with matcha and white chocolate combination, I have been planning to make their rustic version with oats. I have based my recipe on the popular black chocolate and oats truffles I sometimes make and the truffles have turned out perfectly in terms of both consistency and taste. Contrary to Matcha and White Chocolate Truffles, these are crunchy, slightly chewy, rather filling and definitely healthier thanks to the presence of rolled oats. Last but not least, I was thrilled by their beautiful, bright, green grass hue obtained with a more expensive matcha I have recently bought. In short, these cute snacks have obviously improved my mood and almost made me forget yesterday’s disappointment.

If you look for an easy, quick sweet treat with a healthy twist and a sophisticated matcha touch, I strongly recommend these truffles. I wish you all a joyful and sunny Easter, happy Passover and wonderful holidays!

In case some of you are interested in experiments with matcha, here are some delicious suggestions:

Matcha crème brûlée

Light Matcha Cream

and the above-mentioned Matcha and White Chocolate Truffles.

TIP: The most advised method to melt chocolate is in a water bath (in a small pan put into a bigger pan filled with very hot water), but I am used to a very slow melting process directly on the stove or in the microwave. The important thing is not to overheat the chocolate. Otherwise it will become hard and grainy and impossible to use.

Preparation: 15 minutes + 1 – 2 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (about 15 truffles):

100 g rolled oats (not oatmeal!)

100 g white chocolate

1 full teaspoon matcha

7 teaspoons liquid cream (any fat content works here, as long as the cream is not thickened or soured; I have used 25% fat cream)

Chop roughly the chocolate, put it in a small pan with the cream and the matcha powder.

Let the chocolate melt on a very low heat, constantly stirring. Make sure it doesn’t “bubble” and take off the stove, stirring, if you are afraid the temperature increases too quickly. If the chocolate becomes grainy and very thick, it’s ruined.

Put aside.

(If you use a microwave, put the broken chocolate, the cream and the matcha in a bowl and heat for 15 seconds. Give it a stir and put back for another 15 seconds and so on until the chocolate melts.)

Throw the oats into the pan and combine them with the chocolate mixture.

Prepare a bowl with cold water.

Dip your hands in the water and form walnut-sized truffles.

Moist your hands at least every second truffle.

Put the balls on a plate or in a flat container and refrigerate for at least one hour.

Light Coconut Cream with Canned Peaches

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A couple of weeks ago a Japanese friend invited me for a lunch which ended with a most sensational light dessert. Actually her coconut cream was one of the lightest desserts I have ever had in my life, in terms of both calories and texture and certainly one of the most delicious things I have ever tasted. Luckily the recipe wasn’t secret! I did hesitate however before making it because it called for agar-agar, a product which brings back awful memories. Since I had been assured the preparation was simple, I gave agar-agar another chance. The cream was very easy indeed and the result was perfect at the first attempt.

Agar-agar (“kanten” in Japanese), apparently meaning “jelly” in Malay, is a gelatinous substance obtained from certain seaweed varieties, usually sold in a form of powder or (in Asian countries) in long sticks. Even though it has been used by food industry all around the world, it is rarely used in European households, gelatin being the most popular gelling agent. It has been gaining popularity probably thanks to its vegetable origins and to its health benefits. In fact agar-agar contains water soluble agents, which help digestion and are considered excellent in slimming diets. Even though some people say agar-agar is a gelatin equivalent, I cannot agree with it.

As I have recently told Charles (Five Euro Food) in my opinion food set with agar-agar is different and someone who is used only to gelatin has to experiment a bit with it on order to obtain satisfying results. This is my first successful dish with agar agar, but certainly not the last because somehow I feel I couldn’t obtain the same results with gelatin. The cream has a very delicate consistency, close to natural yogurt . Since both coconut and cow milk are used, the coconut taste is not overwhelming. In short, an addictive, elegant and refreshing dessert.

Prepared with canned peaches and canned coconut milk, this quick cream is a perfect solution for a last-minute, pantry-based dessert served practically all year round. I find it particularly good now, since we are having very warm sunny Spring. My friend served it with fresh mango and I think any fruit (apart from raw kiwi and raw pineapple) can be used. I am impatient to test it with strawberries!

Do not wait until the cream becomes cold before pouring it into the bowls because agar sets at room temperature and once disturbed, it will not reset properly!

Preparation: 15 minutes + 2-3 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (serves 4 – 5):

250 ml/about 1 cup coconut milk

250 ml/about 1 cup cow milk

4 tablespoons sugar (I have put only 2 but I like moderately sweet desserts)

1/3 flat teaspoon agar agar in powder

4 – 5 halves of canned peaches

Dissolve the sugar and agar-agar in the mixture of the two milks. Bring to boil and, constantly stirring, let it simmer for about a minute.

Put aside.

Prepare four individual bowls or low glasses.

(Do not wait until the cream becomes cold because agar sets at room temperature and once disturbed, it will not reset properly!).

Cut up the peaches into cubes and distribute into the bowls (one half per bowl).

Pour the creamy mixture over the fruit pieces and refrigerate for at least two hours.

Serve very cold.

Light Banana Mousse with Kiwi Sauce

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Waiting for this year’s first strawberries I still keep on buying fruits that kept me company throughout the Winter. A couple of days ago I had only bananas and kiwis, the weather was warm and sunny and I desperately wanted something refreshing. I thought I would try to make a banana mousse based on the triple strawberry mousse, my staple throughout the Summer.

As soon as I found a way to hide the ugly colour of oxidised bananas, I was satisfied with the result. The mousse was light, low-fat, required no sugar (ripe bananas were sweet enough for me) and the kiwi sauce gave it a refreshing, slightly tangy kick with the additional pleasant crunch thanks to the seeds. In short, a perfect guiltless healthy sweet treat and definitely my favourite banana dessert. If you add some rum this dessert might be treated as a solidified version of my banana rum cocktail.

TIPS: Most of you probably know this, but just in case, do not try to include kiwi into the mousse. Raw kiwi and raw pineapple stop every gelatin-based dessert from setting.

Every gelatin powder is different. I didn’t want this mousse to be completely set like a jelly, so I have checked the package and used a bit more than 1/2 of the amount advised to set 500 ml liquid. You might have to make two experiments with your gelatin to obtain the desired texture. It is always better to put too much gelatin than not enough.

Preparation: 10 minutes + several hours in the fridge

Ingredients (serves 4):

4 ripe bananas

1 natural yogurt (125 ml)

1 heaped tablespoon powdered gelatin (or 4 leaves)

3 – 4 kiwis

(2 tablespoons rum)

Prepare 3 or 4 individual serving dishes.

Dissolve the gelatin powder in a couple of tablespoons warm water.

(If you have leaves you have to soften them first in cold water and then dissolve in warm water).

In a blender mix the bananas, the yogurt, the rum (if using) and the dissolved gelatin for a couple of minutes.

Quickly, while the mixture is still frothy, pour it into the dishes and put them instantly into the fridge.

Refrigerate until it is set.

Serve cold.

Just before serving mix the kiwis and pour them over every portion of mousse.

Featherlight French Fritters (Bugnes or Merveilles)

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Tomorrow is Mardi Gras (literally Fat Tuesday, in English called Shrove Tuesday), the last day of Carnival (or Shrovetide) in the Christian calendar. Shrove Tuesday was the last moment to indulge in rich sweets just before the approaching fasting period (Lent) starting on Ash Wednesday. Since fats were traditionally forbidden during Lent, Carnival sweets were usually deep-fried, thus allowing to use up the forbidden ingredient. Even though now most people do not fast during the Lent, these seasonal sweets are still very popular in many countries.

Bugnes (pronounced “byuñ”), French carnival fritters, are the speciality of the Lyon region. The most popular bugnes version is made of doughnut-like soft leavened dough, but the bugnes I prefer – actually the only ones I like – are crunchy, featherlight strips, sprinkled with confectioner’s sugar and very similar to Italian chiacchiere (also called cenci, bugie and a dozen of other regional names) and Polish “faworki” (“chrust“). In French-speaking Switzerland and in other parts of France very similar light Carnival fritters are called “merveilles” (miracles).

This recipe comes from “Le Grand Livre de Cuisine d’Alain Ducasse: Bistrots, Brasseries et Restaurants de Tradition” and just like all the Alain Ducasse’s recipes I have tried (for example Lemon Tart or Crème Brûlée), this one is perfectly explained and leads to amazing results. His bugnes have a very moderate sweetness level, are not fatty at all (one quickly forgets they had any contact with oil) and the grated zest gives them a wonderful flavour. I think these fritters are the lightest thing I have ever obtained with deep-frying method.

TIPS: Bugnes have to be planned ahead (the dough needs to be refrigerated overnight), but they are quite easy to prepare. The only arduous part is the rolling-out process. The dough really needs to be almost paper-thin (about 1 mm), otherwise the air bubbles will not form and the bugnes will not be featherlight.

Special equipment:

a rolling pin

a pizza cutter or pastry cutter (a good sharp knife can also be used, but cutters are more practical)

Preparation: 15 minutes + 1 night in the fridge + 1 hour

Ingredients (yields about forty 4 cm x 12 cm strips):

250 g flour

1 teaspoon salt

15 g sugar

2 eggs

grated zest from one lemon and one orange or from two lemons

75 g softened butter

oil or pork fat for deep-frying

Combine the flour, the eggs, the salt, the sugar and the zest and knead with your hands or in a food processor until the dough is smooth.

Add the butter and knead for a couple of minutes until the dough stops sticking to your hands.

Wrap the dough in plastic film and leave overnight in the fridge.

The following day roll out the dough as thinly as possible (about 1 mm) and cut into strips.

Heat the oil (160°C if you have a possibility to check the temperature, if not make some experiments with small pastry cuts: if the oil starts bubbling around them and they don’t fall to the bottom, it means the oil is hot enough).

Deep-fry the bugnes until golden brown. They are very thin, so it will take only about 10 seconds on each side.

Drain them on paper towels.

Sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar and serve.

French Lemon Tart or Tartlets

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As much as I dislike pairing sweet and sour flavours in savoury dishes, I have always found it irresistible in desserts and the French Lemon Tart represents for me the apotheosis of this combination. I have written about it a long time ago, but the photo was far from appetising and the recipe passed almost unnoticed. I am very grateful to Arudhi from The Box of Kitchen, who has recently dug out my old post, baked the tart and, most of all, enjoyed the results. Her experience and kind compliments made me decide to change the photo, to add some important explanations and to re-post this extraordinary recipe, sharing it with all those who have a passion for tangy desserts.

Even though lemon tart (or pie) is popular in many countries, the thin crust and the absence of cream, flour or condensed milk in the filling make the French version the most subtle and particularly light (by “light” I mean taste, since the tart is far from being low-fat or low-calorie). I don’t know if it’s the thin, crumbly, buttery, almond crust, the delicate, falsely light filling, the perfect balance between the sweet and the tangy or simply the combination of all the flavours, but this is the only tart I can easily finish on my own in two sessions. Served after a nourishing and heavy meal it is a refreshing relief for the palate. For me it is the ideal ending of a spicy meal, such as Beef Rendang, Indian or Thai curry.

The recipe comes from “Le Grand Livre de Cuisine d’Alain Ducasse: Bistrots, Brasseries et Restaurants de Tradition”, a highly reliable source of French recipes I recommend to everyone. This one is as foolproof as other Ducasse’s recipes I have made (madeleines, crème brûlée or my transformation into Matcha Crème Brûlée), but has to be followed attentively without skipping or simplifying any stages.

TIPS: If you wish – and have a blowtorch – you can sprinkle the tart with brown sugar and burn it before serving, like crème brûlée. (Personally I prefer it simple or with some grated lemon zest.)

You can make either one big tart or, as you see on the above photo, individual tartlets (with the amounts below you will obtain about 12 standard tartlets). The tartlets are in my opinion easier to make. If you decide to make individual tartlets, cut down the baking time as advised below.

Special equipment:

beans for blind baking (I have been using the same real dried cheap beans for several years now)

Preparation: 1 hour + 2 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (one 28 cm diameter tart or about 12 standard tartlets):

Crust:

100 g flour

30 g ground or powdered almonds

90g softened butter

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons caster sugar

Filling:

200 ml lemon juice

100 g butter

4 eggs

120 g confectioner’s sugar

(grated lemon zest)

(brown sugar)

Prepare the pastry case.

Mix the butter, the almonds, the salt and the sugar in a food processor. When these ingredients are mixed thoroughly, add the flour and mix again.

Stop when you see a big ball is being formed.

(You may also knead the pastry without the food processor, but then you have to do this very quickly, maximum 5 minutes, pushing with the heel of your hand and minimising the use of your fingers, otherwise the tart will be too crumbly.)

Wrap the dough in a cling film and put into the fridge for at least 30 minutes (you can leave it there up to 48 hours).

Take it out of the fridge and let it soften a bit before using it.

Roll it thinly with a rolling pin (I would advise 1/2 cm) and line the tart pan or individual tartlets forms. (If you don’t manage to roll it out, you can wait until it softens more and spread it with your fingers).

Pick the surface with a fork and place it into the fridge for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 150°C.

Take out the tart dish from the fridge.

Cover the flat surface with a baking sheet and put some dried beans on it. This way the pastry will not rise.

Precook the tart shell (or tartlets shells) until it’s no longer raw, but still white. Take it out, put the beans back into their jar and let the tart shell cool.

Lower the oven temperature to 130°C.

Melt the butter in a pan. Put aside.

Break the eggs in a bowl, add the sugar, the lemon juice and the warm butter. Stir well.

Pour the lemon filling on the warm (not hot) tart shell (or individual shells) and bake it at 130°C for about 30 minutes (or 15-20 minutes if making individual tartlets), depending on the oven (when the tart is moved the surface should be only slightly trembling in the centre).

Let it cool down and put into the fridge for at least two hours.

Take it out of the fridge no more than 30 minutes before serving (it must be cold, but the pastry should soften a bit). At the last moment either sprinkle it with fresh lemon zest or gently pat it dry with paper towels, sprinkle with brown sugar and burn it, or simply serve it as it is.

Prunes in Chocolate

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Prunes in chocolate are the easiest sweet snacks I know. They are also the quickest to prepare (and probably to eat). I wrote about them last year, but I thought they deserved one more chance, especially in the pre-Christmas period, where they fit perfectly as potential edible presents or even Christmas tree decorations. These dark brown, irregular pebbles might not look attractive at first, but most people I know get seduced by the soft tangy prune encased in a thin layer of crunchy dark chocolate. They often receive more “wows” and other appreciation sounds than an elaborate, time consuming cake.

The idea of coating prunes in chocolate is not mine. It is a simplified version of the prunes in chocolate I used to adore as a child. Now I find these candies too sweet and packed with all the cheap hydrogenated oils or whatever vilifies the taste of the chocolate. Prune coated in dark chocolate contains the most important elements of these childhood treats and has become my favourite chocolate snack.

The very easy preparation takes ten minutes and then only half an hour to set in the fridge. Apart from these obvious advantages, prunes in dark chocolate are the healthiest chocolate snacks I know. Thanks to the prunes they also improve digestion, the aspect one shouldn’t neglect during the holiday season. Last but not least, contrary to the last week’s Matcha Truffles, they support very well the room temperature and don’t need to be stored in the fridge.

Before I pass to the recipe, I would like to thank Claire from Promenade Plantings for using my Tartiflette recipe. She has transformed this cheese, bacon and potato gratin into a vegetarian dish, skipping the bacon. Nonetheless her version looks fantastic. Click here to see her vegetarian tartiflette.

A couple of weeks ago Shu Han from Mummy I can cook! has tagged me in a game called “bloggers unplugged”. The game consists in answering personal questions and inviting other bloggers to do the same. I have tried to make the answers as short as possible, hoping you will not fall asleep:

1. What, or who, inspired you to start a blog?

Of course other food blogs.

2. Who is your foodie inspiration?

Of course my interest in food comes from the fact that my mum has always been an extraordinary, open-minded cook, never afraid of new recipes, techniques or spices. Her attitude has developped my curiosity, while the fact that her dishes were better than in any restaurant or at anyone’s house made me want to cook at home too. Apart from my mum, now there are several bloggers who constantly inspire me and motivate me to explore the infinite world of cooking.

3. Your greasiest, batter-splattered food/drink book is?

Definitely Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art by Shizuo Tsuji. I recommend it not only to Japanese cuisine enthusiasts.

4. Tell us about the best thing you have eaten in another country, where was it, what was it?

Pierre Hermé’s macarons. His first macaron has literally put tears in my eyes. Every time I have them, I am spellbound. I have never suspected macarons can be so extraordinary and sophisticated.

5. Another food blogger’s table you’d like to eat at?

I couldn’t choose just one person. I would like to hop from one table to the other, to change countries and cultures every day. The list would be too long to put it here.

6. What is the one kitchen gadget you would ask Santa for this year (money no object of course)?

A huge freezer (or maybe a really huge second fridge with a huge freezer?).

7. Who taught you how to cook?

My mum of course, but afterwards I learnt from books, blogs and am still learning.

8. I’m coming to you for dinner, what is your signature dish?

Strangely, I always get lots of compliments when I improvise, making dishes with leftovers and whatever I find in my kitchen (fried rice, pasta, noodles, tarts) without any precise recipe.

9. What is your guilty food pleasure?

There are many of these. Black pudding, foie gras, korokke, dark chocolates from my favourite chocolatier, bread from my favourite French baker…

10. Reveal something about yourself that others would be surprised to learn?

This is really difficult… I suppose that since I hardly ever talk about wine, this one might be a bit surprising: if I have to choose between an excellent bottle of wine or excellent food, I will always take the former. I know many wine bottles, not even excessively expensive, I would never exchange for any meal or food in the world.

I would love to hear confessions from the following bloggers (of course if they are willing to participate):

Charles (5 Euro Food)
Jeno (Weeknite Meals)
Kelly (Inspired Edibles)
Mr. Three-Cookies (Three Cookies)
Ping (Ping’s Pickings)

(Sorry if some of you have already played the unplugged game and I have forgotten.)

Now, if you are still awake, let’s go back to the recipe!

As I have already mentioned, chocolate and prunes are the only necessary items, but you can add some aromatic alcohol to your melting chocolate. Apricot brandy (Hungarian palinka is the best!) or rum are excellent.

Special equipment:

gift bags, boxes, paper presentation cases, gift paper and threads to hang them on a tree, etc., depending on what you want to make with the prunes

Preparation: 10 minutes+ cooling time in the fridge

Ingredients:

35-40 prunes (stoned)

100g (one bar) good dark chocolate

(50 ml apricot brandy, rum or any aromatic alcohol you like)

Melt the chocolate on low heat, in a small pan, stirring and not letting the chocolate boil.

(Add the alcohol at the end and stir well.)

Put the prunes into the chocolate and coat them in it, shaking the pan or moving them with a spoon.

Put them on the baking paper or a plate and put into the fridge until the chocolate coating becomes firm.

Take them out of the fridge and do whatever you have planned!

Matcha and White Chocolate Truffles

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Today I am blog-sitting for Nami! In other words I have the honour of guest posting on Nami’s Just One Cookbook. Nami is a constant inspiration in my exploration of Japanese cuisine and a dear friend I look up to for her culinary and photographic skills, so I am very proud she has left today her blog in my hands. I strongly encourage you to click here and see my post on Just One Cookbook, where you will find more pictures, my blogging confessions and, most of all, Nami’s extraordinary recipes and photos.

This recipe is a modified version of chocolate truffles I have been making for years. If, like me, you love the soft chocolate truffles bought at confectioner’s shops, you will be happy to learn they are quite easy to make at home. Set in individual paper cases and placed in a nice box, they are quite an impressive edible present. They are also an elegant alternative when served with tea or coffee at the end of a meal.

The basic preparation of such truffles is called ganache (pronounced “ga-nash”), a mixture of melted chocolate and cream, sometimes with a bit of butter. Confectioners often coat such truffles in melted chocolate, but I prefer to coat them in different ground nuts, cocoa or dessicated coconut. Dark chocolate ganache is my favourite, but, especially for today, I have decided to modify these festive treats and adapt them to Nami’s magic world of Japanese cuisine.

Until now my experiments with matcha (powdered green tea) proved successful, so I have decided to use it as the Japanese touch in my chocolate truffles. Opting for white chocolate was a very wise decision. It was a perfect pairing for the sophisticated, subtle taste of matcha. The truffles are not overly sweet and have a very original, slightly bitter, typical matcha taste, mellowed by the buttery creaminess of white chocolate. If you are a fan of matcha, I hope you will enjoy them as much as I did.

TIPS:

During the chocolate melting process, keep a very low heat, stir constantly and do not let it boil.

While forming the truffles, make sure your hands are not too warm, running cold water on them from time to time and rolling the truffles between your fingers and not on the palm of your hand (which is warmer).

The truffles should be kept in the fridge (it can be the warmest part of the fridge), so make sure you say it while offering a box to someone.

Preparation: 30 minutes + at least 6 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (makes 20 – 25 truffles):

150 g high quality white chocolate

100 ml liquid cream (at least 25% fat)

2 heaped teaspoons matcha

a couple of tablespoons each: cocoa, ground almonds and dessicated coconut

Break the chocolate into small pieces. Put into a small pan with matcha and cream.

Let the chocolate melt on a very low heat, constantly stirring.

Pour into a food processor and mix until very smooth.

Transfer the mixture into a container, close tightly with a lid and refrigerate until the ganache has thickened (at least 3 hours).

(It can also stay in the fridge overnight or even for several days).

Prepare small, deep bowls with the coatings you have chosen.

Your hands shouldn’t be too warm, otherwise the ganache melts and truffles are impossible to form.

Run your hands under cold water every five or six truffles and clean them quickly with a paper towel.

Dust the inside of your hands with the chosen coating, quickly form a truffle, but using only the fingers (the palm of your hand is always much warmer), put it into a bowl with coating and, moving the bowl, coat the truffle thoroughly.

Repeat until you want to switch to another coating.

Place the truffles on a plate or in paper cases and refrigerate a couple of hours before serving or before offering them.

The truffles should always be kept in the fridge (it can be the warmest part, but the fridge is obligatory).

Light Unbaked Cheesecake with Vanilla

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Unbaked cheesecake is the oldest of all the light desserts I know. The one I make is refreshing, has a mousse-like texture and a very pleasant slight tanginess. When two weeks ago Charles from 5 Euro Food posted a luscious Prickly Pear Cheesecake recipe, I decided that since most bloggers I know prepare no-bake cheesecakes with high-calorie cream cheese, I should write about my way of making this popular dessert.

First, I never use cream cheese in sweet dishes. My unbaked cheesecakes are always made with smooth fresh cheese, often called quark or fromage blanc (not only in French-speaking countries; thank you, Ping!), which looks like a very thick yogurt and is available almost all around the world. (It can also be made with well mixed curd cheese, but this one is much more difficult to get in many countries). Quark exists in several fat content versions, but I usually choose that one or the semi-fat (the 0% fat is a bit too tangy for sweet dishes). However, I have recently realised that even the fattest version has approximately twice less calories than regular Philadephia cream cheese. Do not think I choose fresh cheese because it is low-calorie! I simply love its taste and would never exchange it for cream cheese in my desserts. Apart from that, I am not very fond of crust in cheesecakes, so I never make it (even though I love crusts in tarts).

Sugar, gelatin and fresh cheese are the basic ingredients. This time I have also added vanilla and, just before serving, I grated some dark chocolate over the cheesecake. It reminded me vaguely of stracciatella ice-cream, but in a much lighter version.

TIP & UPDATE: This cheesecake can be prepared with Greek yogurt instead of quark.

Special equipment:

individual ramekins if you want to serve individual portions

Preparation: 40 minutes + several hours in the fridge

Calories: about 150-250 kcal per serving depending on the cheese fat content

Ingredients (serves 5):

500 g fat or low-fat smooth fresh cheese (quark) or Greek yogurt

3 tablespoons hot water or hot milk/cream

10 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar (you can make it even lighter using a sweetener or powdered stevia)

2 heaped tablespoons gelatin (sometimes the amount depends on the brand; take the amount necessary to set 500 ml of liquid)

1 vanilla pod

(dark chocolate)

Split the vanilla pod in two lengthwise. Put into the hot water or milk or cream and leave for about 30 minutes.

Take the pod out, grate the vanilla seeds into the liquid and put the split pod aside.

Mix the cheese with the sugar and the vanilla-infused liquid.

Dissolve the gelatin in warm water, add to the cheese mixture.

Mix for a couple of minutes.

Fill individual ramekins (or one big dish) with the cheesecake mixture.

Put into the fridge (covered) for a couple of hours. Usually 3 hours are enough.

Unmoulding the cheesecakes is the only tricky part.

Run a knife around the edge and then, quickly, invert the ramekin onto a serving plate.

Tap at the bottom very hard: the cheesecake should fall out.

Light Matcha Cream

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This refreshing, light cream is the second dish I have made with matcha, Japanese powdered green tea. It has become my staple throughout the Summer and since hot days are soon over in Europe, I thought it was high time I posted it. I based my recipe on the Joël Robuchon’s cream (in “Le meilleur et le plus simp le de Robuchon “), the same one I used while preparing Light Coffee and Cardamom Cream.

As an avowed – though still inexperienced – matcha desserts fan I find this cream extraordinary. It is a distant cousin of Matcha Crème Brûlée, but without the crunch and with a bit less calories. As always, matcha adds elegant bitterness and makes the cream particularly cooling. This is most of all a dessert, but it can also be served between the meals as a palate “refreshener”, recently fashionable in many restaurants.

Beware! This recipe is far from being perfect. In spite of double straining, a part of matcha powder accumulates on the bottom of the dish, creating a darker thin line. This doesn’t alter really the taste, but is quite annoying… If anyone has an idea how to avoid it, please let me know! (Strangely I have never had this problem with Matcha Crème Brûlée).

Preparation: 1 hour + at least 2 – 3 hours in the fridge

Special equipment:

3 or 4 individual baking dishes

Ingredients (makes 4 small or 3 medium creams):

400 ml milk (I used skimmed)

4 egg yolks

4 tablespoons sugar (or sweetener)

2 flat tablespoons matcha

Pour the milk into a pan.

Slowly bring the milk to boil.

Put aside.

Heat the oven to 140°C.

Combine the yolks, the sugar and the matcha.

Strain the warm milk into the bowl with egg yolks and mix everything with a spoon.

Wash the pan.

Pour the cream mixture into the pan.

Heat the mixture for about 10 minutes (without boiling), constantly stirring.

Strain it and put aside.

Boil a big amount of water.

Prepare a baking dish at least as high as the individual cream dishes and big enough to contain all the creams.

Strain the cream mixture once more into the individual dishes.

Place them in the big baking dish.

Fill the big dish with boiling water so that half of the creams is covered.

Cover the creams tightly with aluminium foil and put (very carefully!) into the oven.

(This step is very important to avoid a thick “skin” forming on the top of the creams.)

Bake for about 25 minutes (the creams are ready when only the centre is slightly trembling, but the rest is set).

Let them chill and put into the fridge for several hours.

Serve very cold.

Mirlitons de Rouen, or Almond Tartlets Filled with Jam

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“Elle à table” is the only food magazine I regularly buy. It is modern, creative, interesting, doesn’t feature only recipes, but also food-related articles and, most of all, is not aimed only at housewives, but at foodies in general, regardless their profession, time spent in the kitchen or cooking skills. The other day, leafing through the Summer edition, I saw very tempting mini-tarts called “mirlitons”, checked if I had all the necessary ingredients and made them on the spot.

Mirlitons originate from Rouen, in the North of France and there are slim chances to find them in a “standard” pastry shop in a different region of France. The basic recipe calls for an almond and eggs filling with vanilla and orange flower water. The “Elle” recipe included some jam filling and it was the main reason why I have decided to try it. As a notorious food preserver I am in a constant search of other jam use ideas than a simple buttered toast, so they instantly caught my eye.

Mirlitons are quick, easy, have a very pleasant mixture of flavours and textures and are luscious even without vanilla or orange flower water. Thumbprint Hazelnut Cookies and Thumbrint Almond Cookies are other options to use leftover or surplus jam.

Note: These mirlitons shouldn’ t be mixed up with Mirlitons de Pont-Audemer. Shaped like cigars, they are another regional sweet specialty, but completely different and much more complicated to prepare. I hope I will manage to make these one day too…

Special equipment:

pastry cutter (mine had a 11 cm diameter)

tartlet moulds

Preparation: 1 hour

Ingredients (makes 12-14 mirlitons):

1 puff pastry sheet (230 g – 240 g)

100 g ground almonds

100 g caster sugar

2 eggs

(vanilla, orange flower water)

about 200 g thick jam or fruit butter

5 tablespoons thick cream

flaked almonds

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

With a pastry cutter cut out circles and place in the tartlet moulds.

Put a heaped teaspoon of jam in the centre of each tartlet case.

In a bowl combine the eggs, the sugar and the ground almonds. Add the cream and stir well.

Cover the tartlet cases with the almond mixture up to 3/4 of the height.

Sprinkle with flaked almonds and bake for about 20 minutes until golden.

Serve warm or cold.

Thumbprint Hazelnut Cookies with Jam

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Every year, when jam making season arrives I realise once more I have made too many jars which would better be finished to make space for the new generation. Rather than forcing ourselves to have toast with jam for breakfast, lunch and dinner, I prefer making sweet treats calling for jams or fruit sauces, such as Thumbprint Almond Cookies. A couple of days ago I wanted to prepare them once more, realised I was short of almonds and substituted them with ground hazelnuts. The hazelnut version was so good, I am now wondering which one is my favourite… They may look clumsy (the jam is always oozing out of the thumbprint hole during the baking process), but the taste is heavenly.

Before the recipe details I would like to thank Mr. Three-Cookies (from Three Cookies) and Raymund (from Ang Sarap), who invited me to take part in Seven Link Challenge. The challenge consists of presenting 7 links from one’ own blog, each in a different category and then inviting other bloggers to participate in it. The aim is to present some older posts from ones’ blog and to share with the readers our opinions and facts about it.

Choosing the links for the 7 categories was not an easy task. It was however a great occasion to look back on my texts, photos and to have a critical view of my blog. Thank you, once more, Raymund and Mr. Three-Cookies, for tagging me! I will do the best I can. Here are the promised 7 links:

1. The most beautiful post.

I don’t know if I’m influenced by the way it looked in reality, but Asparagus Tempura is my favourite. It’s one of the most beautiful dishes I have ever had on my table.

2. The most popular post.

If I am to believe the number of visit Google has registered, the most popular was Chicken Karaage. I must say it was a very big surprise since I didn’t know there were so many people interested in this Japanese recipe!

3. The most controversial post.

I wouldn’t call it controversial, but since Marmite (the British savoury bread spread) is maybe the most love-or-hate product I have ever used, I might classify the Marmite Muffins as controversial. Believe me, even if you are not a Marmite fan, these muffins are irresistible!

4. The most helpful post.

I have no idea what might seem helpful to my readers. For me the thing that was really helpful was discovering how to make Dashi, or the Japanese stock. Since I started preparing it on my own, I realised how important it was in lots of dishes, not only in soups.

5. The post that was surprisingly successful.

The post which earned me most compliments and interest was Hot Strawberry Sauce. It is my all-time favourite hot sauce and I was positively surprised it appealed to so many readers.

6. The post that didn’t get the attention it deserved.

Actually I will bend here the rules and talk about two posts, both featuring Gochujang, sweet and hot chili paste, the only Korean ingredient I cannot live without.

Black Pudding and Gochujang Toast is the French (or rather European) and Korean fusion snack I would love everyone to try one day. Every time I make it I think how simple it is and how perfect for someone who is fond of gochujang and who adores good black pudding (aka blood sausage).

Scallops with Gochujang are one of the simplest and quickest meals or snacks I can imagine and I would love everyone to taste this combination one day. They go surprisingly well with… sour cream and when scallops are in season I prepare this dish quite often.

7. The post I am most proud of.

I wouldn’t really say here “the post” since the photo isn’t great. Fat Liver Terrine with Port (Foie gras au porto) is rather the culinary accomplishment I still am very proud of.

Duck Fat Liver Terrine is one of my top 5 dishes and usually the most expensive item on the restaurants’ menu. Even though raw fat liver does not cost a fortune and is easy to order from every butcher in France, very few – even French – house cooks ever try preparing it. There is a kind of mystery surrounding its long and a bit complicated preparation. Since there is someone in my family who does it divinely well, I decided to experiment one day on my own and was surprised how fabulous even a less-than-perfect looking home-made terrine is. Since I started making it on my own I have also become very critical to what is served in restaurants and often is simply awful.

It wasn’t easy at all! Now the invitation part! The rule is to choose 5 blogs to continue this game. I bent the rules once more and have chosen three “group” websites created and written by friends, couples or families. I wonder if they easily agree on the seven links’ choice… Hereby, I would like to invite the following bloggers to participate in this challenge:

-Shilpa and Jenny from Baking Devils

-Katherine and Greg from Rufus’ Food and Spirits Guide

-Sara and her sisters, hiding under the pseudos kclever and mclevering, from Three Clever Sisters.

If you want to take part in this links challenge, you are more than welcome!

(I would also have tagged of course Nami and Shen from Just One Cookbook, but Nami already took part in this challenge.)

Now back to the Hazelnut Cookies recipe! These cookies can be baked in any moulds (or even without moulds). This time I used mini-muffin ones to make them really tiny. The recipe calls for matzo bread, but leftover biscuits (even slightly savoury crackers) can be used here too.

Preparation: 1 hour+ 1 h 30 min in the fridge

Ingredients (about 40 mini cookies):

100 g butter, melted

90 g ground hazelnuts

45 g matzo bread or biscuits (sweet or slightly salty)

1/4 teaspoon salt

130 g confectioners’ sugar (or less if using very sweet biscuits instead of matzo bread)

1 egg

half a 300 ml jar of thick jam

Mix everything in a food processor (apart from jam). Put into the fridge for at least 1 hour to become firm.

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Fill in the greased mini-muffin – or other – forms with a 2 cm thick layer of the dough. (You can also form circles and put them simply on a baking sheet, but in my case the cookies spread around them and became flat).

With your thumb (or another similarly shaped tool) make a small indentation in the middle of each cookie. Put once more into the fridge for 30 minutes.

Take the cookies out from the fridge and fill the indentations with jam.

Bake around 10-20 minutes till they become slightly golden (check if the bottoms are well cooked).

Take them out of the oven and take out of the forms when they are cold.

They keep for several days covered with a plastic film.

ANZAC Biscuits

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ANZAC stands for “Australian and New Zealand Army Corps”, created during the World War I and the biscuits bearing this name were created at the same time by women desperate to send nutritious home-made food to their husbands, sons and boyfriends. According to this website, faced with at least two months’ transportation time, a group of women worked out a recipe based on rather healthy Scottish rolled oats biscuits and added only those ingredients which ensured long preservation. There are several theories on why eggs are not used, but their absence certainly makes biscuits last longer.

Nowadays ANZAC Biscuits are widely available in supermarkets in Australia, New Zealand and apparently also in the UK. They are also very popular among home cooks and there is myriad ANZAC Biscuits recipes on the web. Mine is taken from Three-Cookies blog (or to be precise from Easily Good Eats by the same author) and if you know Mr. Three-Cookies, you understand that my choice was obvious. If you don’t, either of his blogs and you will quickly realise it would be difficult to find a better cookies and biscuits specialist. If you are familiar with ANZAC Biscuits, Mr. Three-Cookies is also a very adventurous experimenter and his Easily Good Eats blog features also modified versions of this classical recipe.

Before baking them I have never tasted ANZAC Biscuits, so I really didn’t know what to expect. I have already baked with rolled oats and desiccated coconut and frankly thought I would obtain good, but quite ordinary biscuits. Since my expectations were so low, the first bite felt like an electric shock on my tastebuds. I don’t know what magical chemical reaction is created among the ingredients, but the result is irresistible and surprisingly complex. I bet that if you have never tasted ANZAC Biscuits, “Wow!” is all you will be able to say while you bite into the first one. (UPDATE and WARNING: do not taste the raw dough! You will end up eating it straight from the pan while you wait for your previous batch to bake).

I have only slightly modified the recipe and followed Mr. Three-Cookies’ advice (see his post here), using brown sugar, which gave a very pleasant, slightly caramelised taste. I have also put molasses instead of golden syrup. I also totally agree with him on one point: do not use margarine or any other vegetable shortening. The butter taste and aroma is so strong, you will lose a big part of the pleasure.

As I have mentioned above, they keep fresh in a tightly closed container for several days (and maybe even more, but I wasn’t able to test it). The stay crunchy and slightly chewy.

Preparation: 1 hour (or 30 minutes if you manage to bake everything in one batch)

Ingredients (I have obtained about 30 biscuits):

70 grams/1 cup rolled oats

90 grams/1 cup desiccated coconut

120 g/1 cup flour

125 g/about 4,5 oz butter

160 g/3/4 cup brown cane sugar

1 tablespoon dark syrup (I used 2 tablespoons molasses)

1 teaspoon baking soda (bi-carbonate of soda, in countries where it is not widely available, for example in France, it can be easily bought in pharmacies)

2 tablespoons boiling water

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Melt the butter and syrup or molasses in a big pan.

Combine the flour, the oats, the coconut and the sugar. Add slowly to the melted butter.

At the end combine the boiling water and soda. Pour the mixture into the dough and stir well with a spoon.

Roll small balls (mine were a walnut size) and put them on a baking sheet (leaving at least 3 cm spaces between each ball since they will spread).

Flatten them slightly (they will flatten even more during the baking process) and bake 10-15 minutes or until golden.

Don’t worry if the dough seems crumbly. It is normal. Just squeeze well the dough when forming balls in your hands and don’t flatten them too much.

Keep them in a tightly closed container. Apparently they keep for ages. All I know is they keep at least three days.

Light Coffee and Cardamom Cream

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As an avowed coffee addict I also adore desserts containing my favourite drug. Last week I thought it was high time I tried to make one on my own. Browsing through my cookery books I was tempted to make not the easiest coffee éclairs, but finally opted for the cream recipe I found in “Le meilleur et le plus simp le de Robuchon “ (The best and the easiest by Robuchon).

Even though he doesn’t have anything in common with coffee, Joël Robuchon is worth mentioning here for those who have never heard about him. He is the chef, who has collected the biggest number of Michelin starts in the world (26!) and whose most famous recipe was… potato purée! Several years ago Robuchon retired, travelled all around the world, especially to Asia and ended up creating a new “open kitchen” concept of restaurants. His “Ateliers” have been opened in several countries in the world. Click here if you want to learn a bit more about this extraordinary and – what is rare among the big chefs – humble and truly nice man.

Let’s go back to the cream. The recipe didn’t call for coffee, but I saw modifying it would not be a big problem. As the title promised, it was very easy indeed and I say this, conscious of the fact that many people dread the hot water bath, or “bain marie”, necessary in this recipe. I don’t know why I added cardamom, but it proved a wise decision, since it added dynamism and complexity. The coffee-cardamom combination creates a refreshing, elegant and serious dessert, particularly pleasant on hot days. As almost always I have slightly modified the basic cream recipe.

Preparation: 1 hour + at least 2 – 3 hours in the fridge

Calories: approx. 4 x 155 kcal (if using skimmed milk and real sugar)

Special equipment:

3 or 4 individual baking dishes

Ingredients (makes 4 small or 3 medium creams):

400 ml milk (I used skimmed)

4 egg yolks

4 tablespoons sugar (or sweetener)

2 heaped tablespoons instant coffee or 2 very small and very strong espresso)

2 pods of cardamom

Pour the milk into a pan.

Crush the cardamom pods and throw them with the grains to the milk.

Slowly bring the milk to boil.

Put aside and let the cardamom infuse for about 30 minutes.

Heat the oven to 140°C.

Combine the yolks, the sugar and the coffee (cold if using espresso).

Strain the cardamom milk into the bowl with egg yolks.

Discard the cardamom and wash the pan.

Mix everything with a spoon and pour into the pan.

Heat the mixture for about 10 minutes (without boiling).

Put aside.

Boil a big amount of water.

Prepare a baking dish at least as high as the individual cream dishes and big enough to contain all the creams.

Strain the cream mixture into the individual dishes.

Place them in the big baking dish.

Fill the big dish with boiling water so that half of the creams is covered.

Cover the creams tightly with aluminium foil and put (very carefully!) into the oven.

(This step is very important to avoid a thick “skin” forming on the top of the creams.)

Bake for about 25 minutes (the creams are ready when only the centre is slightly trembling, but the rest is set).

Let them chill and put into the fridge for several hours.

Serve very cold.

Upside-Down Apricot Tartlets with Muscovado

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Apart from the very practical home-cooking books I also buy those written by famous – usually French – chefs or confectioners with breathtaking, state-of-the-art photos and incredibly long and scary recipes. I buy them not only to leaf through the glossy pages, dreaming of sophisticated dishes and admiring the masters’ skills, but also to find some ideas, tips or bits of recipes I could introduce into my cooking. This is the case of “Plaisirs sucrés” by Pierre Hermé, my absolute idol in the world of macarons and confectionery.

Frankly speaking, if the cover of my “Plaisirs sucrés” starts being used up, it’s not because I use Pierre Hermé’s recipes often in my kitchen. Nonetheless, since I found there the best pastry cream (crème pâtissière) in the world, (I used it in Strawberry Tartlets), I decided to look there for a new apricot dessert idea. This is how I came across the thing which makes this upside-down tart unique, namely the extravagant use of moist, sticky, brown sugar, called muscovado. By “extravagant” I mean putting a 1 cm layer of sugar I would have never dared in my previous upside-down tarts. Having tried both a thick and a thin layer of muscovado (opting for individual tartlets made this experiment easier), I can affirm the 1 cm layer is obligatory (actually I have put about 1 cm, but Pierre Hermé advised 1,5 cm!). One of the tartlets was made with normal brown sugar; it wasn’t even half as good. The apricots are darkened by the muscovado, but the aroma and the taste are simply divine.

A tip: I couldn’t find this sugar in “normal” shops and have finally seen it in both a Vietnamese and a British grocery…

Special equipment:

individual tart dishes

pastry cutters (slightly bigger than the tart dishes)

Preparation: 1h30

Ingredients (makes 6x 10 cm diameter tartlets):

1,5 kg apricots

1 thin puff pastry sheet (about 230g)

muscovado sugar

50 g butter

juice from 1 lemon

Preheat the oven to 200°C.

Grease small tart dishes generously with butter (also on the sides).

Put a 1 c, thick layer of muscovado sugar on the bottom of each dish.

Cut the apricots in two, remove the kernels.

Arrange the apricots very tightly (they will shrink) in a nice pattern, laying them on the side. (Not the kernel side or the skin side!).

Sprinkle the lemon juice over the apricots.

Cut out circles from the pastry sheet? They should be a bit bigger than the dish bottom diameter.

Cover the apricots with the pastry tucking well the sides downwards.

Prick the surface several times with a fork.

Put the tartlets into the oven for 30 – 40 minutes.

Take them out when the tart is dark golden.

When the tartlets cool down a bit, make sure, with a knife, that the pastry doesn’t stick to the sides of the dishes.

Put a small serving plate over each tart dish (bottom side up) and carefully turn the tartlets upside down. (Do it over a kitchen sink and wear dark clothes.)

If some fruit pieces haven’t fallen into the plate, simply arrange them in the tartlets and if there is any juice left in the dishes, simply pour it over the turned-upside tarts.

Put them into the fridge and serve cold.

Strawberry Tartlets

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The French are unquestionably the fruit pastry masters and the very popular Strawberry Tart with Pastry Cream is an excellent example of this typical, fruit quality enhancing dessert. Delicate, simple and light, it is found in most cookery books and in season it is available in many pastry shops. This tart has no equals when it comes to enjoy aromatic, perfectly ripe strawberries that one would regret transforming for example into a mousse (ideal with slightly acid or simply not perfect fruit).

The recipe is not complicated, and the secret of the best result lies in the perfect pastry cream (with a real vanilla pod), the butter-based thinly rolled out pastry sheet and, of course, in the highest fruit quality. The pastry cream is inspired by the recipe I have found in “Plaisirs sucrés” by Pierre Hermé, a famous confectioner whose macarons’ discovery was one of the most unforgettable moments in my life. Even though this is the best pastry cream I have ever tasted, I have slightly modified it after the first test (mostly the sugar amount). The same recipe can be adapted of course to a big tart, but I usually prefer individual portions.

Click here to see two other examples of even simpler typical French fruit tarts: the Mini Pear Tarts and the Mirabelle Tart

And see here a few ideas of what to do with leftover egg whites.

Special equipment :

a round pastry cutter and 6 small round ramekins of the same diameter

Preparation: less than 2 hours

Calories: about 300-320 kcal per tartlet (counted without butter in the cream and depending on the pastry)

Ingredients (makes 6 x 10 cm diameter tartlets):

about 200 grams thinly rolled out puff pastry (or home-made sweet pastry)

500 g strawberries (preferably equally sized)

Pastry cream:

500 ml milk (I used skimmed)

50 g corn starch

4 heaped tablespoons caster sugar (or more if you like very sweet desserts)

1 vanilla pod

4 egg yolks

50 g butter (can be omitted, but the taste will be slightly worse)

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Cut out the circles. Put them on the baking paper. Cover with another layer of baking paper and block from rising with round ramekins with a similar diameter.

Bake until golden.

Put aside.

In the meantime prepare the pastry cream.

Bring to boil 400 ml milk with the vanilla pod cut in two lengthwise.

Put aside and let it cool down.

Scrape off the two vanilla pieces so that the small vanilla grains stay in the milk.

Combine the yolks, the sugar, the corn starch and the remaining cold milk.

Strain the warm vanilla milk, constantly stirring, into the yolks mixture.

Discard the vanilla pods (wash them, dry them and put into a confectioner’s sugar jar: you’ll have vanilla scented sugar).

Put back the obtained mixture into the pan and constantly stirring bring to boil.

Put aside when it thickens to the cream consistency.

If the cream is not smooth and you see many lumps, mix it in a blender or rub through a sieve.

When the cream is no longer hot, but still very warm, combine it with butter.

Put a couple of tablespoons of the cream on each tart circle.

Cover with the strawberries (cut in halves, in four pieces, sliced or whole).

Serve slightly chilled.

Light Matcha Crème Brûlée

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Crème brûlée or burnt cream is probably the most frequent dessert I make and my favourite along with chocolate mousse. It is light, it is cold and warm, soft and crunchy… Taken from the famous French chef Alain Ducasse’s book (“Le Grand Livre de Cuisine d’Alain Ducasse: Bistrots, Brasseries et Restaurants de Tradition), my crème brûlée recipe calls for half milk and half cream, following the contemporary lightning desserts tendency I observe in the famous chefs’ or confectioners’ recipes. If you have never prepared cream and milk version, do try it.

Crème brûlée (or burnt cream, since the British and the French both claim its invention) is one of the dishes I have always preferred unaltered, only seasoned with vanilla pods. I have always regretted all the modifications. I also think the savoury starter of crème brûlée with foie gras (fat duck’s liver) is the worst thing which can be done with this expensive and wonderful product.

Crème brûlée with matcha is however an exception. Matcha (抹茶) is the Japanese powdered green tea, used in the tea ceremony and in many desserts. Since I am a big green tea drinker, I have always had a feeling I would love it in crème brûlée. Somehow I have never had the occasion to taste it in a restaurant and I couldn’t decide on making it. One day, when I saw it in a restaurant review featured on the Shizuoka Gourmet blog, I felt the time has come to try it.

I haven’t followed any specific recipe. I have simply adapted my usual one, adding matcha. I must proudly say my crème brûlée with matcha was sensational. It was very refreshing, with a slightly bitter, herbaceous and surprisingly sophisticated taste. Even though I am now its avowed fan, frankly I wouldn’t advice serving it to those who hate green tea and to children. (Both would certainly love the basic crème brûlée though.) However, if you like green tea and/or want to be surprised how easily a sophisticated dessert can be produced at home, give it a try!

The only thing I would change next time is straining the liquid before pouring it into the burnt cream dishes. The foam which forms during the mixing process darkens the burnt cream.

If you don’t feel like experimenting with matcha or if you are simply not a fan of this Japanese green tea, you might like the classic Light Crème Brûlée:

TIPS: Do not taste this matcha version (it doesn’t concern the traditional crème brûlée) unless it has spent 12 hours in the fridge. It improves with time. It was excellent after 12 hours, but, after 48 hours in the fridge, I could only define it as fabulous.

Blowtorch is a very good investment since, at least from my experience, it’s impossible to obtain the contrasting textures and temperatures crème brûlée is famous for with an oven broiler (the cream warms up). You can use blowtorch on many other custardy desserts and sweet tarts.

Click here for a few ideas of how to use up the leftover egg whites.

If you don’t have brown cane sugar, you can use caster sugar to burn, but the taste is worse.

Special equipment: a blowtorch

Preparation: about 2 hours+ min. 12 hours in the fridge (the best is to wait 48 hours)

Calories (the whole batch, using skimmed milk and including the burnt sugar): about 1600 kcal

Ingredients (serves 4):

5 egg yolks

250 ml/8,5 fl oz/about 1 cup milk

250 ml/8,5 oz/about 1 cup liquid cream (without any thickeners; I have used cream with 25% fat content)

4 teaspoons matcha

4 slightly heaped tablespoons caster sugar

about 50 g/about 1/4 cup cane sugar (but not the moist one!)

Put the milk and the cream in a saucepan. Bring to the boil, put aside for 30 minutes.

Strain it.

Preheat the oven at 100°C or 120°C if it’s the old oven type .

Put the yolks, the sugar and the matcha in a blender or food processor and mix it.

Add the warm – not hot! – milk with cream and mix again for a couple of minutes.

Strain it to eliminate the foam and pour the mixture into six burnt cream dishes or other small shallow ramekins.

Bake it for approximately 45 minutes. (The custards are ready when only their centres are slightly trembling when moved).

Let them cool down. Put into the fridge for at least 12 hours (but it would be even better to leave them for 48 hours).

Just before serving take the creams out of the fridge and pat dry with paper towel (water drops will appear on the surface and they will make the burning process difficult).

Sprinkle with cane sugar and caramelise it with a special blowtorch.

Serve immediately while the top is still warm and crunchy and the cream below stays very cold.

Triple Strawberry Mousse with Quark or Yogurt

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When strawberries appeared on my market I got crazy and since then I have been making the strawberry mousse at least twice a week. This easy and light strawberry mousse has the advantage of the triple strawberry presence, therefore a more varied consistency and two colour layers. Apart from the fresh (quark) cheese (or yogurt) – gelatin – mixed strawberry base, this mousse contains also strawberry quarters and is topped with strawberry sauce. Excellent, refreshing, light dessert for hot days and a real paradise for strawberry fans.

(Have I mentioned it is absolutely low-fat and low-calorie and can be even more “diet” if using low-fat quark cheese and sweetener instead of sugar/no sugar?)

TIP & UPDATE: If you don’t find quark/fresh cheese, the Greek yogurt or even any natural yogurt is a good substitute.

Preparation: 20 minutes+ 2 – 3 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (serves 2):

100g quark cheese or Greek yogurt (or any natural yogurt)

300 – 400 g strawberries (hulled)

a couple of tablespoons confectioner’s sugar or sweetener +1 tablespoon for the sauce

2 tablespoons gelatin in powder

Mix 2/3 of the strawberries, add the sugar and the cheese or yogurt. Mix once more.

Taste and add more sugar if needed.

Dissolve the gelatin in 4 tablespoons warm water.

Mix with the strawberry mixture.

Cut up several strawberries (5 or 6 depending on their size) in 4 pieces.

Throw them into the mousse. Stir delicately and pour into serving dishes.

Put the mousse into the fridge for 2 -3 hours.

In the meantime mix the remaining strawberries with 1 tablespoon confectioner’s sugar or without sugar if they are sweet or if you want to obtain a contrast between the sweetened mousse and the slightly acid sauce.

Refrigerate.

Pour the sauce over the mousse and serve.

French Lemon Tart (or Tartlets)

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My recent cravings for lemon cakes, creams and tarts probably reveal a lack of vitamin C (which probably isn’t there after baking anyway) or, simply, a typical cold days’ need for sunny and vivid colours on the table. Or, maybe, together with sour cherry obsession, they are the obvious signs of my growing preference for acidity… This beautiful tart, served after a nourishing and heavy meal, is not only a refreshing relief for the palate, but also an act of protest against the seasonal gloominess. It is the ideal ending of a spicy meal, such as Beef Rendang, Indian or Thai curry.

Lemon tart is not a newcomer to my kitchen. I have been making the French lemon tart for several years, whenever I had lemon-loving company or when I simply couldn’t stop dreaming about it and finally would end up making a small portion only for myself… Of course, the French are not the only ones to consider the lemon tart as one of their national desserts. However, the thin crust and the absence of cream, flour or condensed milk in the filling make the French version of this worldwide known dish the most subtle and light (by “light”I mean taste, since the tart is far from being low-fat or low-calorie).

My slightly modified recipe can be found in “Le Grand Livre de Cuisine d’Alain Ducasse: Bistrots, Brasseries et Restaurants de Tradition”, a highly reliable source of French recipes. As other Ducasse recipes (crème brûlée, madeleines) I have been making, this one always works perfectly well.

TIPS: If you wish – and have a blowtorch – you can sprinkle the tart with brown sugar and burn it before serving, like a burnt cream. (Personally I prefer it simple or with some grated lemon zest.)

You can make either one big tart or, as you see on the above photo, individual tartlets (with the amounts below you will obtain about 12 standard tartlets). If you decide to make individual tartlets, cut down the baking time as advised below.

Special equipment:

beans for blind baking (I have been using the same real dried cheap beans for several years now)

Preparation: 1 hour + 2 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (one 28 cm diameter tart or about 12 standard tartlets):

Crust:

100 g flour

30 g ground or powdered almonds

90g softened butter

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons caster sugar

Filling:

200 ml lemon juice

100 g butter

4 eggs

120 g confectioner’s sugar

(grated lemon zest)

(brown sugar)

Prepare the pastry case.

Mix the butter, the almonds, the salt and the sugar in a food processor. When these ingredients are mixed thoroughly, add the flour and mix again.

Stop when you see a big ball is being formed.

Wrap the dough in a cling film and put into the fridge for at least 30 minutes (you can leave it there up to 48 hours).

Take it out of the fridge and let it soften a bit before using it.

Pick the surface with a fork and place it into the fridge for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 150°C.

Take out the tart dish from the fridge.

Cover the flat surface with a baking sheet and put some dried beans on it. This way the pastry will not rise.

Precook the tart shell (or tartlets shells) until it’s no longer raw, but still white. Take it out, put the beans back into their jar and let the tart shell cool.

Lower the oven temperature to 130°C.

Melt the butter in a pan. Put aside.

Break the eggs in a bowl, add the sugar, the lemon juice and the warm butter. Stir well.

Let it cool down and put into the fridge for at least two hours.