Coconut strawberry slices.

My New discovery is coconut oil (coconut butter). Without flavour and scent it is really great and can substitute butter when making shortcrust pastry.
Putting together coconut foam and strawberry jam was really cool!! Just try it!



Coconut and strawberry slices

Makes 4 slices 11x4cm

Ingredients:

125g wholemeal flour
40g icing sugar
65g coconut oil
1 tablespoon water, approximately
1 egg, separated
6 tablespoons caster sugar
6 tablespoons shredded coconut



Method:

1. Preheat oven to 200C. Grease 4 mini pans, or small lamington pan.
2. Sift wholemeal flour into large bowl; rub in coconut butter, stir in icing sugar. Add egg yolk and enough water to mix to a firm dough. Knead on floured surface until smooth. Press over base of prepared mini pans (lamington pan). Bake in 200C oven about 10 minutes or until lightly golden.
3. Meanwhile, beat egg white in a small bowl with electric mixer, until soft peaks form; Gradually add caster sugar, whisking well with each addition. Gently stir in shredded coconut
4. After 10 minutes ( cake is lightly golden) reduce oven temperature to 160C. Quickly spread strawberry jam over hot base; Spoon the white egg and coconut mixture over the jam.
5. Bake for another 15-20 minutes until topping is lightly brown.
6. Cool in pan; cut into slices

Enjoy :-)

Almond Brownie

Who does like brownie? I guess vast majority of us, therefore today I am going to present you Brownie in a new flavour – a divine almond and chocolate combination.
If you are a big fan of almonds, you are going to love it more than the classic Brownie.

This cake is not as sticky as the classic one and tastes a bit like a chocolate marzipan. For me it was love at first bite!

I think Almond Brownie might be an interesting idea for a Valentine’s day gift – satisfaction guaranteed :-)



Almond Brownie (gluten free)

Ingredients:

100g unsalted butter, chopped
100g dark (70% cocoa) chocolate, chopped coarsely
100g (½ cup) fruit sugar (or caster sugar)
180g (1½ cups) ground almond (almond flour)
2 eggs beaten lightly
3 tablespoons Amaretto liqueur or orange juice (optional)
icing sugar for dusting

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Grease 20x20cm square pan
2. Melt butter and chocolate in small heatproof bowl over small saucepan of simmering water. Remove from heat, gently stir until mixture is smooth, cool
3. Beat eggs and sugar in a big bowl with electric mixer (3 minutes), then stir in ground almond and Amaretto liqueur (or orange juice).
4. Gradually stir chocolate mixture into eggs and almond mixture.
5. Spread mixture into prepared pan; bake 25-30 minutes (NO LONGER!!). Cool in pan!
6. Cut cold Brownie into pieces, serve dusted with sifted icing sugar and fresh oranges sliced into quarters.


Enjoy and Happy Valentine's Day!

Rocket. Pine Nut. Pear. Parmesan. Salad!

Simple salad. Interesting combination. Great idea for an elegant dinner party.
All you need is…

Good olive of oil and lemon…



Pine Nut Kernels



Thinly sliced parmesan



Thinly sliced pear



Fresh Rocket

Rocket Salad
Ingredients:1 Packet of fresh rocket
4-5 tablespoons thinly sliced parmesan
2 heaped tablespoons pine nut kernels
half of pear, thinly sliced

Dressing:Proportion: 1 tablespoon of lemon juice + 3 tablespoons of olive of oil
pinch of salt + pinch of sugar

Mix well , check the seasoning. If you need add more lemon juice, olive of oil etc.

SaladToss together all the ingredients in a big salad bowl, pour dressing over the salad, toss lightly and take to the table.

Enjoy :-)

Chocolate Brioches.

Sweet rolls rich with eggs and butter are one of my favouritis however I usually made them in lighter version :-).
This time Brioches with chocolate and almond icing.

Brioches dough contains yeast, that’s why it needs time!! to rise before we can bake it. Properly risen dough is fluffy and not slack-backed.

I believe good yeast cake doesn’t need as much yeast as suggested in some recipes. I always try to use it as least as possible increasing rising time. Also, instead of white flour I always used strong (bread) flour, because it’s rich with gluten, which helps dough rise.


Chocolate Brioches

makes 6

Ingredients:
250g (2 ¼ cups) strong white bread flour
60g caster sugar
1 teaspoon dried yeast
2 eggs
50ml hand-hot fat milk
50g butter, melted
Pinch of salt
6 chocolate squares

Method:
1. Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl and stir in the sugar and dry yeast. Make a well in the centre and add the eggs , melted butter and milk. Beat vigorously to make a soft dough.
2. Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 5 minutes, until smooth and elastic. 3. Brush a clean bowl with oil. Place the dough in the bowl, cover with clingfilm and let stand in a warm place for 2-3 hours or until doubled in size.
4. Turn out onto a floured work surface, knead lightly for 1 minute, then roll into a rope shape. Cut into 6 pieces. Shape each piece into a smooth round. Place a chocolate square in the centre of each round. Bring up the sides of the dough and press the edges firmly together to seal.
5. Place the brioches on a non-stick baking sheet, cover lightly with oiled clingfilm and let stand in a warm place for 1-1.5 hour or until doubled in size.
6. Bake in a preheated oven, 220C/425F for 15 minutes or until golden brown.
7. Leave to cool slightly on wire rack.
8. When the brioches are cold, make the ICING. Sift 4-5 tablespoons of icing sugar into a small bowl and mix with enough Amaretto liqueur (1-2 tablespoons) to form a soft icing. Spread the icing over the top of the each brioches.

Enjoy :-)