These pecan banana muffins are a great alternative to banana bread. They have a very tender texture and are easy to make and serve. The crunchy pecan topping makes them extra special! If you’re tired of that old standby try these for a new twist on an old favorite. They freeze beautifully too. Continue reading
This gluten-free brownie recipe is so easy and quick to make and so delicious on top of that. Even the icing takes 10 seconds as you spread pieces of dark chocolate over the warm cake. Continue reading
What else can you do with all those juicy red cherries that appear on the market in July but make a fresh cherry pie! It’s really very simple if you have a cherry pitter (the same gadget you use to pit olives too). This recipe has very few ingredients even less than for an apple pie. Cherries don’t need hardly any other ingredients to bring out their fresh flavor. Continue reading
Here is another one of my favorite “quick breads” – probably the quickest.! You can whip these up in 20 minutes flat – 10 minutes to make the dough and 10 minutes to bake them. Their tenderness and flakiness depends on how little you handle the dough. Too much handling can toughen them. These biscuits are just as good and lighter than scones. If you split them you can fill them practically with any filling. This is a handy recipe to have around. Continue reading
Injera is a unique Ethiopian flatbread that can be substituted very easily for bread. Usually it’s made with teff flour that’s not easy to find here but there are many versions such as mine here. I also have to add that it is a super quick bread that you bake on a pan on the stove and only 2-3 minutes per flatbread . The sourdough starter really accelerates the fermentation process. In Ethiopia it’s also used instead of forks or spoons to scoop up any kind of food. The spongey texture really absorbs the sauces. It’s even great for breakfast with jam! Continue reading
These delicate little French pastries have an added oriental twist with the addition of Japanese Matcha tea powder. Luckily I can easily find this tea at the nearby “Parliamo del The'” tea shop just down the street where I live. They are so easy to make if you have the shell shaped madeleine tins otherwise you could also use small cupcake pans. Continue reading
The “magic” in this one-bowl cake lies in the formation of three distinct layers: a chocolate, a cream and a crunchy top layer. It doesn’t require any icing – just a sprinkling of powdered sugar is enough but if you wish to make it more fancy as I did in the picture you can also add a strip of chocolate sugar paste around the edge of the cake – and maybe why not a simple chocolate rose on top. Continue reading
This delicious cake is said to have originated in the 1400’s in Bologna. It was especially served for “Corpus Domini” a religious holiday at the end of May. This is a typical Italian “homestyle” cake with ingredients you can easily find in your pantry. This recipe in addition is completely gluten free as the rice is substituted for flour. My version is also lactose free as I used almond milk in place of regular milk which makes it even lighter. A richer version of this recipe can be found in Florentine pastry shops in the form of a pastry called “Buddini di Riso Fiorentini”. These are little pastry cups filled with a similar rice mixture enriched with pastry cream. Not to be missed the next ime you’re in Florence! Continue reading
Sourdough starter isn’t just for bread but can act like a leavening agent for cookies too, giving them an interesting texture and lightness. The rhubarb in these sourdough cookies also adds a pleasant tartness. Continue reading
This is by far my favorite crumble recipe considering ease and perfect results. The almonds give the topping extra crunch and the filling has a tender consistency due to the brief pre-cooking of the fruit. Here the rhubarb is really the star as it releases its particular tangy and juicy flavour. If you can’t get a hold of these stalks you can either double the apples or substitute it with other fruit such as blueberries, plums, gooseberries or even strawberries. Continue reading