Hello there!

As you could probably see, this blog is not working anymore.

I`m keeping it the way it is since some of my favorite recipes are here. So, this blog will stay as it is, and hopefully it will be useful to people who stop by.

So, that`s it. Goodbye :)

Flourless Brownies

Since it`s passover, and I was asked to bring a flourless dessert to some Seder, I thought that brownies would be the perfect dessert. I was trying to find a recipe that did not include matzo meal or other flour substitute.  I found this recipe, by the lovely Nigella Lawson, that included ground nuts – just what I was looking for.

This recipe is an perfect replacement for the ordinary brownies, and also have a great nutty flavor. Also, it is a one bowl recipe, a thing that makes it just perfect. With these few ingredients, you get a very, very rich result.

To make the brownies look perfect after cutting them, I suggest, as I do with all brownies recipes, to put them in the fridge for at least two hours, and only when chilled, cut then into squares. Though it is not suggested in the recipe, I stored the brownies in the fridge, and served them just out from the fridge.

Almond Cookies

This recipe was in my “to do” list for at least two years. It is the kind of recipe, that you know that you want to make right when you open your brand new cookbook. There was something about this recipe, although it is not sophisticated, that attracted me. I`m happy to say that this was a great success, and I would defiantly make these again.

These are lovely cookies. I can`t think of any other description for them. They have the most delicious lemony taste, and the crispy almond coating, really gives it this extra something.

You`ll be surprised of the quantity of the cookies that this recipe makes (don`t worry about that, they`ll disappear before you even notice). Just  make kind of tiny rolls, even if it may look a bit small, trust me on that one. Also, make sure to bake the cookies until golden, you want the almond coating to be very crispy.

Tiramisu

I`ve made this delicious dessert while my brother was here, and we looked for some kind of cake to make. After much thinking, we laid our eye on this dessert, and we decided to make it. We did not, in any we regret it.

This recipe, unlike may other tiramisu recipes that I saw, does not include soft white cheese, white chocolate, or any other ingredients that have nothing to do with a good tiramisu.

Tiramisu, as you may know is a traditional Italian dessert, which is made of mascarpone cheese and zabaglione. As any dessert with very high percentage of fat, this was delicious, and fairly easy to make. The only catch about this one, at least in israel, is the price of the mascaropne cheese: it is quite expensive here, so making proper tiramisu may cost you a bit.

Lemon Poppy Seed Cookies

This recipe does not require any explanations – It is very very simple to make, and the final result is very delicate, and very tasty (and may I add- very addictive!).

A few words about poppy seed- this recipe requires using ground poppy seed. I didn`t have any, but if you an get it, please make sure to use poppy seed that was grounded in the same day, or that was grounded and then frozen, at the same day. Be very careful with store bought poppy seed, since they tend to be bitter, and may ruin whatever you cook.

Also, if you would like to add a bit more lemon to these cookies, you could roll the unbaked cookie log with granulated sugar with a lot of lemon zest. Then, simply slice into rounds and bake as written in the recipe.

Hamantashen

It`s so weird to call these “Hamantashen” since I`m used to their Hebrew name, Ozney Haman (which literally means- the ears of haman). These crisp and filled cookies are made especially for Purim, the happiest holiday (to my humble opinion…). I won`t bother you with the full history background of these cookies, but if this interest you, you could find nice explanations in many sites.

These cookies are basically circles short pastry filled with all sorts of fillings (usually poppy seed filling, chocolate, or dates), which are folded to triangle shape and baked until crisp. You really don`t need Purim as an excuse to make these.

One of the most complicated things about these cookies is getting the cookies to remain at their original shape while baking. I found that if you chill the filled and shaped cookies before you bake them, they generally  tend to lose their shape, the solution is to chill the shaped and filled cookies before baking (preferably overnight).

Happy Purim!

Daring Bakers- Chocolate Valentino (Flourless Chocolate Cake)

 

The February 2009 challenge is hosted by Wendy of WMPE’s blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef.
We have chosen a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.

 When I first saw this recipe, I was really looking forward to make it. This turned out to be a bit ironic – The recipe’s name is “Chocolate Valentino” and it is supposed to be a great recipe for valentines day, but I decided to make it in one of the most depressing days, the elections day.  Now, without getting into politics, let me just say that that day was not only rainy and gray, the result were also very much depressing. Certainly not a day to make a nice cake like this one. That day could also explain the poor photos this time, it was so gray outside, that I just couldn`t get any nice pictures, sorry!

Making the cake was quite easy. I halved the recipe, and baked it in a buttered muffins tin. The texture of the cake was a bit sandy, but the flavor was very nice. Since we are not patient people, we ate the cake while it was still a bit warm, and it later turned out that this cake is best when completely chilled.

Because I don’t own an ice cream machine, I decided to make vanilla semifreddo instead. I choose a recipe by Jamie Oliver, and it turned to be delicious, and it had quite a nice texture.

Torta Di Ricotta

I`ve got to admit that I had doubts when I made this cake. When thinking of Ricotta, you usually imagine a flavorless cheese with a not-so-rich texture. This cake surly proved me wrong. Though this in not the creamiest cheesecake, it is certainly a very good one. This cake is quite dense, and has the most delicious combination of the citrus taste alongside with the crust and the cheese.

Another good thing in this cake is that it is fairly simple to make, compared with other cheesecakes. Here, you just have to make the crust, and then make the batter (and the only thing that is required is a stand mixer). In this one, you don’t need to whip egg whites, or to use all sort of tricks that the cake wont fall.

Oh, something about the citrus. If, like me, you are not the biggest fans of oranges, I suggest you put a zest from one orange rather than two as written in the recipe. This will give a slight taste of orange, which is perfect to my taste.

Kadaif pastry filled with whipped cream and strawberries

This dessert is so delicious because of its simplicity. There are only handful of ingredients, but the the combination of the crispy kadaif, cream and the slightly tang of the strawberries make this an ideal dessert.

In case that this is the first time that you hear the word ”kadaif “, here`s a short explanation: Kadaif is the name of a very thin shredded pastry which is used to make dessert and pastries.  It is sometimes known as shredded phyllo. After dipped into melted fat (usually melted butter) and baked, it gets a very crispy texture. I think that you could find this in Mediterranean stores, in Israel this is usually found in specialty stores.

This dessert is one of many things that you can make with Kadaif: from filling it with mousses to wrapping salmon. There are endless possibilities, and If you are able to find this product, grab it right away, and I promise that you won`t regret it.

Some tips for working with Kadaif:

• Kadaif usually comes frozen. Before using it, make sure to defrost it, either in the fridge, on in a sealed plastic bad in room temperature for about half an hour.
• Be very gentle when working with it. It tends to crumble.
• After dipping it with the butter (or any other fat), form it into the required shape, and press it to get an even layer.

Chocolate Stout Cake

This cake is the perfect chocolate cake. It has anything you would want to find in one: moist, with a great chocolatey flavor, not oily, and has a delicious ganache topping. I loved this cake so much that I`ve made it twice in the same weekend (and the fact the one bottle of Guinnes was enough to make exactly 1.5 batches was also very helpful).

I strongly suggest that you make the cake with the ganache, without it the cake is delicious, but the addition af the ganache makes it extra extra delicious. Besides of that, this cake is simple to make (though the baking time may be longer, as it was in my oven), and there is not one good reason why you would not go and buy a bottle of Guinnes right now, and run to make this cake.

Daring Bakers- Tuiles

This month challenge is for my idea of a perfect challenge. I`ve been planning on making tuiles for ages, and this challenge allowed me to do so.

I really enjoyed making these, and more than that, I enjoyed taking pictures of the final product. I loved how easy making the dough was, and the verity of shapes and flavors.

Mine, as you could see, did not turn out perfect- my critical mistake was using no as soft butter as the recipe ordered. That made the paste a little lumpy, and the baked Tuiles a bit bubbly (as you might see). As for the taste, it was nice, and the chocolate decoration added quite a lot.

I made the basic recipe, and made butterflies shapes. I made the butterflies stencils simply by using a paper and some drawings I took from the internet. I paired my ready tuiles with chocolate-irish cream truffle, and strawberries with a dash of balsamic vinegar.

Jacques Torres’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

I wanted to make these recipe from the moment I saw it. I must say that this situation happens to me quite a lot; I see some recipe, and suddenly I must make it as soon as possible, no matter what.  As I said, this recipe was on my to do list for quite some time, and finally, I made it a few days ago.

I wont lie and say that this is the best mind blowing chocolate chip cookie recipe ever (though I was hoping to say that…), but this is a nice recipe, that makes nice cookies: crunchy on the outside, and chewy on the inside. My problem with the recipe was the slightly eggy taste that it had, though not something very noticeable, but still (and on that matter, are there any differences between the Martha’s recipe and the NY times recipe?).

I halved the recipe, since the  amount of cookies that come out of this recipe could feed a small village. Also, I used grams instead of ounces and pounds, the measurement are written brackets in case you should need it.

Chocolate Mousse Cake

This cake automatically gives you an appointment to the nearest cardiologist. Just take a quick look: this cake contains: 9 eggs, almost half a kilo of chocolate and heavy whipping cream, not something you`ll eat very often.

But, lets look on the brighter side, shall we? although the cake has enough eggs and chocolate to feed a small village, it has only 120 gr. of butter, and only 70 gr. of sugar, such small amounts probably delete all the calories of the chocolate and the eggs, right??

Now, seriously, you must make this cake at least once. Though my picky brother may not agree with me, I think that this cake is the perfect combination between the baked base and the mousse. The base is basically baked chocolate mousse that is a kind of “melt in your mouth” kind of cake. The mousse is perfectly rich and dreamy, with a slight (slight!) taste of the rum and the amaretto. All in all, this cake simply wroth the calories, and if you are feeling a little bit guilty, eat a small slice, and after couple of  hours, eat another one. I promise you the the guilt will just fade away!

A few bit a pieces to make this cake perfect: first, make sure to use only fresh eggs. This cake contains uncooked eggs, so be very careful with that. Second, after baking the base, it will fall, so be ready for that.

Maple Pecan Bread

I`ve made this one twice in one week, and I strongly suggest that you do the same. This bread is delicious, it is a bit cakey and it has a slight taste of maple, and a wonderful taste of the nuts. Honestly, I have nothing else to say, but you should really go and make this bread.

No Bake Cheesecake topped with Strawberries

The strawberries season has officially started here, though this cake was not the perfect way to start it. You could probably hear from my tone that this cake was not the greatest hit. Don`t get me wrong here, it was tasty, but it didn`t have that extra something, that makes a good cake wonderful.

I`m guessing that this cake may not be practical for those of you who live outside of Israel, since this cake is made with soft white cheese (or as we call it- “Gvina Levana”, simply meaning- white cheese). This cheese has low fat percentage, and is relatively light in texture. If you happen to know the exact name of this cheese in the US, please let me know.

If you are planning of making this one, I have two tips to make it better. First, use less gelatin the suggested in the recipe, I found that the cake was too firm. I would probably use about one envelope of gelatin instead of one and a half. The second tip is to add a bit more flavor to the filling, I used vanilla bean, but you could put some good vanilla extract or even lemon zest.