Carrot Cake

First, some good news- my father bought a brand new, and very very amazing camera- Nikon D90. let me tell you- this is one hell of a camera! This camera is so good that I found myself taking pictures of (almost) everything that was around me (including a billion of my poor cat, bless him). So, I don`t think that there is any difference, but the picture above was taken with the new camera.

Now, lets focus on the reason we are here for- the cake. I truly love this cake, and I have managed to make it three times since the beginning of the month, which is quite an unusual thing.

I only make a cake that often (well the term “often” is relative, at least for me, since there`s not a lot of demand here…) when it is really good. I have a few signs when a cake is going to be a favorite (please don`t laugh, this is the honest truth!):

1. I eat at least four slices in about an hour.
2. After about tow hours, there is about 1/4 cake left.
3. The cake doesn’t last for more than a day and a half.

This cake certainly replied to all of the above. The cake is note a fancy one, but it is so good, and has such a nice texture, that it is almost the perfect cake to accompany a nice cup of coffee. Now, I know that most of you are used to making carrot cakes with a thick layer of cream cheese frosting (And that`s not a bad thing at all!) but, this cake is so good as it is, that you really don’t need frosting.

Neiman Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookies

This is supposed to be quite famous chocolate chip cookies recipe, I think. I was looking for a chocolate chip cookie that contains light brown sugar, and I fund this one.

The cookies looked a bit different from other recipes as they came out of the oven- they were more plumpy, and not quite flat as the others . Besides their looks, their taste was good and not too sweet. Actually, they were very delicate. Overall, this is a good recipe, and not a complicated one.

I don`t remember if I wrote it before, but there is a nice trick for making the cookies look “richer”, and it applies to all the cookies that have supplements (like chocolate chip and nuts)- after done making the cookie dough, put only half of the  supplements amount in the batter. after placing the cookie on the pan, sprinkle with what is left from the supplements and bake. By making this, you will get a richer looking cookies, and certainly more impressive looking ones.

Dense Chocolate Loaf Cake

I think that this picture says it all- a rich, dense, full of sweet chocolaty flavor- all in one cake. As you can see, this in not a sophisticated cake, it does not have the “clean” look, and even if you try really hard, you wont be able to cut it clean (or even cut whole pieces without crumbling, but maybe I`m just not so good at cutting cakes?) . What you get from this cake is mainly flavor and texture- not necessarily good looks.

This cake is perfect to serve with coffee or tea in the afternoon, or simply if you have a sweets craving (and willing to wait for the next day…).

As much as I liked the cake, I think it was very very sweet (and I love sweetness, but this was too much), I also think that a little bit of salt could really give the cake a kick.

Fudge Brownies with Walnuts and White Chocolate

This brownies recipe is one of the best that I`ve ever made, the greatest thing about it is that you can play with it and add or omit whatever you like, and still get a great brownie. To my opinion, you can reduce the sugar, and use only one cup (that is, if you are using white chocolate, that adds a lot of sweetness). You can also add chocolate chips, pecans, a bit of alcohol (Irish cream, Frangelico…) or whatever you have at home.

If you wish that your brownies will have a clean look, and that applies especially to the fudgey ones, make sure to freeze the brownies after you bake them, and them cut them with a very sharp knife. Even if you are tight in time, never cut brownies while still hot, or you will get a crumbly mess.

Rosmary Olive Bread

My mother bought these great big kalamata olives in the market that is about 20 min. drive from my house. Imagine a market like all the exotic markets that you see in all kinds of traveling programs- markets full of spiced and little stores, fish stands, and stands packed with lamb and meat, vegetable and herbs- this market is pretty much the same.

So, after eating almost all of the olives, I had left with a few, and I was looking for some nice recipe for olive bread. I can’t say that this bread is the best olive bread that I’ve made, but maybe with some few adjustments it will be better. If you want to make this recipe, I would suggest reducing the salt and olive oil amounts. The bread was very salty, and it had a very strong flavor of olive oil (or maybe that was to point?).

Mini Quiches

If you see this picture and immediately think of a buffet back in the 80`s, think again (or taste them…). These mini quiches are so nice, delicious, and if you’ve a little extra time their ideal for parties, hosting, or just as little treats.

I made these little quiches for a party that was suppose to celebrate the 60`Th anniversary to the place that I live in. The people who planned this party gave each family a certain thing to make, by the first letter of the family name. We got in the quiches and savory pastries category, so I decided to make these little ones, who are easier (and look nicer) to serve in a large buffet.

Well, never mind that this party was quite a mess, these seemed to be a small success (or maybe because there was not a lot of food, but let me be optimistic), they were gone before I noticed.

This is one of the longest recipes that I wrote, but I must say that it doesn’t take as much time as you may think to prepare these little beauties. You just need the time to chill the pastry and roll it, but if you put the rolled and shaped pastries in the tin, you could keep it in the freezer for weeks- and when you want to make some, make the filling, fill them and put them strait in the oven.

The filling here are just suggesting, you can be you your imagination and fill these with almost anything.

Crunchy Granola

This is a great granola recipe, and you should try making it since it is relatively simple to make, and it turns out really well.

As you can see in the pictures, I didn’t add any nuts in this granola. Instead, after baking the granola, I added about 250 gr. Of dried cranberries, that gives the granola a great delicate tart taste.

Chocolate Coffee Cookies

This chocolate coffee cookie recipe has a very strong chocolate flavor that combines wonderfully with the coffee flavor. If you don’t like coffee in your cookies, or if you’re just not in the mood, omit the coffee, and still get lovely cookies.