Other than inspirational poetry which she was famous for, Emily Dickinson was also a good baker. The renown American poet loved baking bread and cakes too and decorating them with fresh flowers. Here I replicated Emily’s Coconut Cake recipe which turned out moist and delicious and also very easy to make. Her original handwritten recipe follows. Continue reading
These grapefruit bars are a nice change from the all-time favorite lemon version. They are even easier to slice and serve being less sticky and crumbly. Of course this means less sugar and butter which isn’t a bad idea either. If you still want a richer version you can increase these two ingredients according to your tastes.
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With carnival season approaching bakery windows are brimming with all sorts of fried pastry in Italy. Each region or even city has their own specialty. Recently visiting Siena I enjoyed a taste of their rice fritters – Frittelle di Riso – in historic Piazza del Campo. A little hut is set up there around this time that turns out freshly fried Frittelle by the minute. Outside a line of people impatiently wait for these delectable crispy treats. A sign outside listed the genuine ingredients. Coming back home I couldn’t help making them myself. I wasn’t disappointed – I think I came pretty close! Of course to fully enjoy them you should really come to the beautiful medieval city of Siena yourself. Continue reading
These flourless and fat- free Healthy Cream Filled Brownie Valentines come from a Jamie Oliver inspired chocolate beetroot cake recipe. In my version I used steamed beets instead of fresh ones, substituted regular sugar with coconut sugar and I also added chopped walnuts. The batter was baked in a rectangular pan with a lower rim to make heart cutouts easier to form. Ultimately each heart was sandwiched together and topped with whipped cream and raspberries. Continue reading
A rose is a rose is a rose…..couldn’t be put simpler! Only that these roses are edible too with fragrant rose petals an important part of the ingredients. Continue reading
This Apple Pear “Miascia”, a traditional cake from Como could be grouped together with other “frugal” cakes in
Italy such as the “Torta Paesana” of Brianza. These cakes both use day old bread soaked in milk but the “Miascia” has a lighter and fruitier twist in the use of apples and pears instead of cocoa – and walnuts are used here instead of pine nuts. Continue reading
These Easy Pumpkin Sticky Buns can be made in a snap if you have that tube of ready-roll croissants on hand. Just unroll, pinch together the triangles and reroll again with the pumpkin filling. Slice and bake on top of the caramel sauce. When baked, flip them over and you have delicious topping on top of everything. Couldn’t be easier than that! Continue reading
This Blueberry Panettone is so easy to make with a bread machine. By now there are an infinite variety of panettoni on the market in Italy. This year I opted for a blueberry version which was nowhere to be found so I just went ahead and made one! The kneading and two rises were done by my bread machine after which I pulled out the dough and shaped it into two 1/2 kg. paper panettoni cases and two mini ones and then baked them in my conventional oven. I have to say it wasn’t much harder than making bread. I only had to add the (dried) blueberries and finish off with the last rising before popping them into the oven. This is not the overly sweet store bought panettone that can last weeks in your cupboard. There are no emulsifiers or preservatives here but it’s so wholesomely good that it wouldn’t last long anyway! Continue reading
Speculaas are most commonly known as Dutch windmill cookies. These make wonderful Christmas cookies and are more delicate in taste and texture than gingerbread cookies. They can also be decorated with nuts, especially good are sliced almonds and pecans. Continue reading
These gluten free chocolate chip coconut macaroons have only three basic ingredients plus chocolate chips. No flour or fats here. They are super quick to make and bake. So if you like chocolate chip cookies and coconut try this delicious variation. Aquafaba works well here too. Continue reading