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.