Pasta-less lazagna!

I was surfing around on the Internet the other day with nothing specific in mind, just on the general subject of the South Beach Diet.
I saw many recipes and the general idea was that you try to replace carbs, ie. pasta with vegetables, especially courgettes.

One of my very very favourite recipes is, what I call, the Garfield lasagna!!!

So, I decided to give it a twist....

Pasta-less lasagna

ingredients:
courgettes, enough to make layers on the deep dish you will use
mince meat sauce, any kind you like or you can make it yourself
low - fat yellow cheese, again use your favourite
low - fat cream cheese, to your liking

There is really nothing to it. You prepare them the regular way! Just have the ingredients ready and start assembling.

Cut your courgettes thin, I used a mandoline.

Spray a non-stick pan with olive oil and cook the courgettes.

Layer them in your baking dish.

Add a layer of meat sauce.

Then some yellow cheese and some cream cheese (not shown).
Once you have finished layering, bake the lasagna in a preheated 180oC oven for at least 40 minutes.

Ready!

The layers turned out well and the taste was very good. It could use a little more salt!
There was more liquid than I liked, so next time I will salt the courgettes and let them drain, before I cook them.

Louise

Daring Bakers - May 2013

So, another month, another challenge!
Oh, I really did enjoy this one!

It was hosted by one of my favourite food bloggers Korena from Korena in the kitchen.

Our challenge..... Swedish Prinsesstårta !!!!
A really impressive dessert, that you can play a lot with and make endless flavour combinations.
I had seen this before, but I thought it was intimidating, because of the process. I was wrong. It is worth it!

It is a dessert that you "build", in this manner, from top to bottom:

• Marzipan
• Sponge cake
• Whipped cream
• Custard/pastry cream
• Sponge cake
• Custard/pastry cream
• Raspberry jam
• Sponge cake

These are the layers for the traditional cake. Yet, we were able to get creative!
At first I thought of chocolate. Well, I always think of chocolate first for every challenge and how I can make a chocolate dessert...
I did use some white chocolate this time, but what essentially made me go the way I went, was the apple - thyme jam I made a couple of days earlier. I thought apple - cinnamon - custard.... Great!

So, here is mine:

• Marzipan egg-free
• Cinnamon sponge cake
• Whipped cream unsweetened
• White chocolate custard cream
• Cinnamon sponge cake
• White chocolate custard cream
• Apple - thyme jam
• Cinnamon sponge cake

Let us start....

White Chocolate Custard

240ml heavy cream, divided
4 egg yolks
15 gm cornstarch
30 gm granulated white sugar
1 tsp vanilla vanilla extract
150gr white chocolate melted

- Whisk together the cornstarch, sugar and egg yolks. Gradually whisk in 120 ml heavy cream until smooth.

- In the mean time in a saucepan over medium heat, combine the remaining 120 ml of heavy cream and the vanilla extract and bring just to a boil. Add the chocolate and whisk until smooth. Slowly whisk the hot cream mixture into the bowl with the egg mixture to temper the eggs.

- Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and cook over medium-low heat, whisking constantly, until it thickens and comes to a boil. As soon as it comes to a boil, remove it from the heat. I didn't have to pour my custard through a mesh sieve because luckily it was smooth!

- Pour the custard into a bowl and press a piece of cling film directly onto the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until completely cold. I made it a day earlier and kept it in the refrigerator. 

Cinnamon Sponge Cake

4 large eggs
225 gm granulated white sugar
70 gm all-purpose flour
65 gm cornstarch
5 gm baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tsp cinnamon

- Preheat the oven to 180°C with a rack in the lower third of the oven. Thoroughly butter a round pan, line the bottom with a circle of parchment paper, then butter the paper. Dust the buttered pan with flour (i didn't do the breadcrumbs). Set aside.

- Mix the eggs and granulated white sugar and beat on medium-high speed until the eggs are tripled in volume and very light coloured and fluffy, about 5 minutes. The mixture should fall from the beaters in thick ribbons. 

- Sift the flour, corn starch ans baking powder into a bowl, add the salt and then sift the flour mixture over the whipped eggs. With a balloon whisk, fold the flour into the eggs until blended. Once mixed, the batter should be quite thick and smooth.

- Pour the batter into the prepared pan, spread it out evenly, and bake for about 40 min until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out with a few crumbs sticking to it.

- Let the cake cool in the pan for 5 min, then remove it from the pan, invert it onto a cooling rack and peel off the parchment paper.

Marzipan egg-free

115 gm white almonds
225 gm icing sugar
60 ml corn syrup
15 ml lemon juice 

- Put the almonds and icing sugar in the bowl of a food processor and pulse to break and mix the almonds.

- Add the corn syrup and pulse again to combine. Do not be afraid of how the mixture looks, just keep going.

- With the food processor running, slowly drizzle in the lemon juice. Stop when the mixture starts to come together and looks like a dough.

- Knead the marzipan into a ball. Wrap in plastic and chill for a couple of hours.It is enough to cover the cake and nibble as you assemble it.....

Whipped cream

2 cups (480 ml) heavy cream, chilled
1 tsp white granulated sugar

I always use a chilled mixing bowl and whisk before I make my whipped cream.
Whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add the sugar and continue whipping the cream until stiff. Be carefully to stop when it is stiff. If you over-whip, you get butter. Put it in the fridge until ready to assemble the cake.

Now for the critical part: assembly!

- Cut the sponge cake in three disks and reserve the middle disk for the end.
- Put one disk on your serving platter.
- Spread it evenly with the apple - thyme jam.
- Spread half the chocolate custard over the jam in an even layer, but don't go all the way  to the edges.
- Top the chocolate custard with another layer of cake.
- Spread the remaining custard evenly over it.
- Reserve ½ cup of the whipped cream and pile the rest into a mound on top of the custard. Spread it with an off-set spatula at an angle to shape the whipped cream into a dome, piling it up in the middle of the cake.
- Place the third disk (the middle one) on top of the whipped cream. Gently tuck the edges of the cake layer into the whipped cream, so that there is a smooth dome on top.
- Take the rest of the whipped cream and crumb-coat the cake.
- Put it in the fridge for a while to help it set.
- Roll the marzipan on a surface dusted with icing sugar in a circle large enough to cover the cake.
- Cover the cake carefully, smooth the marzipan and cut the excess at the bottom of the cake with a sharp knife.
- Decorate and put it in the fridge again for a couple of hours.
- Take it out about 30 min before you serve it.

This is the jam layer.

This is the white chocolate custard.

This is my dome...

Covered....

Ready!

My comment on this is that I will make it again for the next family lunch. I am already thinking:

• Modelling white chocolate
• Milk chocolate cake
• Whipped cream unsweetened
• White chocolate custard cream
• Milk chocolate cake
• White chocolate custard cream
• Salted caramel
• Milk chocolate cake

 (I am drooling...)


Thank you Korena for giving us a real challenge!!!


Louise

Homemade Peanut Butter!

Peanut butter....
What can I say.... I love it! I can take a jar and eat it with a spoon! So naturally, as I like to make things myself, I tried to make my own peanut butter at home.

All it took was natural peanuts in their shells, which I opened, some salted peanuts, a little brown sugar and I added a pinch of salt in the end.
I like doing it this way, because I can regulate the salt to my liking as I make the peanut butter.

Home made peanut butter

 Put everything in your mixer, using the blades.

 Add 1 teaspoon brown sugar.

 Start pulsing and keep pulsing, keep pulsing, until you start to think that you have done something wrong and you've wasted all the ingredients and Oh, my God, my mixer is really warm....

 Just then the consistency changes... It becomes creamier.

 In the end this is what you want: Creamy peanut butter.

 Not all granules were mixed totally, so I ended up having tiny bits of peanut in the butter, which only made the terxture better (at least for me).

So good! Try to combine it with some apple slices and you have a really healthy snack!


Louise

Brown Butter Glaze on vanilla cupcakes!

I was in the mood for vanilla. I don't know why, but I wanted my kitchen to be filled with aromas.
So I baked a few vanilla cupcakes, using my trusted recipe. Of course, for that vanilla fix I needed, I also added a scraped vanilla bean!

I didn't want any buttercream though, so I went for my next favourite thing: brown butter glaze!
Talking about smells in the kitchen, right?

The glaze is really easy to make:
Melt 125gr cow milk butter, until it is brown, smells caramelly and there are brown bits all over.
Pour it in a bowl and add icing sugar, until you get the consistency you want, thick or runny.
I wanted it to be somewhere in between, so that I can dunk my cupcakes.

 Freshly baked and waiting...

I took a cupcake in my hand, held it reversed and dunked it in the glaze. I lifted it and turned it around, so the excess glaze (there is such a thing????) could drip off and the cupcake wouldn't be overflown.
Then I put it on a wire rack to let the glaze dry.

Lovely little domes! I took them to work and they were vanished!

I was happy with the smells.... And the taste!

Louise

Daring Bakers - April 2013

Well, I know I am late, but at least better late than never!
Between me being sick, Ioanna being sick, a million things to do in the office, I took half the pictures with one camera and half with onother.
So... now I cannot find the second half and there are no pictures of my finished savarin....

Yes, you read correct. It was a savarin challenge!

Natalia of Gatti Fili e Farina was our host this month.

Strawberry Savarin

350 gm bread flour
30 ml lukewarm water
5 eggs at room temperature, separated
15 gm fresh yeast
50 gm sugar
75 gm butter at room temperature
1 tablespoon orange zest
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup mashed strawberries
a little butter for greasing the work surface, hands & baking pan

A) Sponge
In a small bowl mix the lukewarm water, 25 gm of the flour and the yeast , cover with cling film and let it rise 1 hour.
B)
Dough
After 30 minutes have passed, put the egg whites in the mixer bowl and start working at low speed adding flour until you have a soft dough that sticks to the bowl (about 270 gm) and work until it comes together , cover with cling film and let rest 30 min

Add the sponge to the mixer bowl along with a tablespoon of flour and start mixing at low speed. Add the orange zest

When it starts pulling away from the sides of the bowl add one yolk and as soon as the yolk is absorbed add one tablespoon of flour

Add the second yolk, the sugar and as soon as the yolk is absorbed add one tablespoon of flour

Raise the speed a little and add the third yolk and the salt and as soon as the yolk is absorbed add one tablespoon of flour
Add the strawberry puree.
Keep on adding one yolk at the time and the flour saving a tablespoon of flour for later.
Mix the dough until is elastic and makes threads and then add the butter. As soon as the butter is adsorbed add the last tablespoon of flour.

Keep on mixing until it is very elastic and cover the dough with cling film until it has tripled in volume 2 to 3 hours.

While you wait butter your baking pan.Grease your hands and your work surface and fold with the dough two or three times around. Cover with cling foil and let it rest 15 minutes on the counter

Turn the dough upside down and shape your dough in a rounded bun.

Make a hole in the center with your thumb, lift the dough and put it in the prepared pan

Cover with cling film and let rise in a warm spot until the dough reaches the top of the pan about 1 hour

Bake the Savarin for about 40 minutes until the top is golden brown in a pre-heated oven 170°C.

Meanwhile you can prepare the syrup of your choice. I made a simple strawberry syrup with 1 cup water, 1 cup sugar and fresh strawberries. I let it boil, until the colour and the taste were what I had in mind.

When the Savarin is done take it out of the oven, let it cool and remove carefully out of the pan. When it is completely cold, put it back in the pan, poke it around with a skewer and start adding ladles of syrup until you see it along the rim of the pan.

I left my Savarin in the pan until it was time to serve it. I put strawberries in the hole and drizzled it with white chocolate ganache. Also, because of the red syrup, my Savarin was pink!!!!! (I wish you could see it....)

Thank you Natalia!


Louise

Loukoumades!

Loukoumades is a traditional dessert here in Greece.

It is essentially a yeast dough which is fried and while warm, sprinkled with cinnamon and confectioner's sugar or drizzled with honey or chocolate.

They are rather easy to make, as long as you are patient!

Loukoumades

750gr all purpose flour

1 tbsp active dry yeast

warm water

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tbsp sugar

syrup:

350gr honey

300gr sugar

220gr water

Sift the flour and mix in the salt, sugar and cinnamon.

Put it in a large bowl and make a hole in the middle.

Mix the yeast with a little warm water until it is dissolved and pour it in the hole in the flour.

Mix lightly and add a little more warm water until you have a sticky porridge like dough.

Use a hand whisk to mix all the ingredients very well.

Leave the dough in a warm place to rise and double in size. When little bubbles appear, it is ready. See the first picture? That's the idea.

Using a teaspoon, take little dough and drop it (carefully!!!!) into a deep pan with hot olive oil to fry. When the loukoumas is ready and golden brown remove it and place it on a plate, which is lined with kitchen paper towel, so that the excess oil is absorbed.

In the mean time, prepare the syrup (if you want to use it). Boil all the ingredients together, until thick and well, syrupy!

Put your loukoumades on a serving platter and drizzle with syrup, or just drizzle with some good golden honey, as I did!!

Nice golden brown colour!

Excuse the dark picture, but it was getting late and I just want you to see the honey.....

You can play around with the dough, the toppings, the flavors of the syrup. The possibilities are so many!
I like to add cinnamon in the dough, but you can omit that and dust a little on top.
Also, they are AMAZING with nutella on them!!!!
You can add chocolate chips in the dough or small pieces of fruit. Can you imagine apple bits in the dough and cinnamon with confectioner's sugar on top?

Seriously, you have got to try them.

Louise

Daring Bakers - March 2013

It is quite some time since my last post, which was also a Daring Challenge. A lot of work and my little girl being ill kept me away.

So, this month's challenge was very very intersting. Hidden Veggies! Hidden in delicious desserts!

Our host, Ruth from Makey-Cakey gave us a great challenge, as we were supposed to use vegetables in desserts, any kind of veggie in any kind of dessert. She also suggested some recipes.

I made two cakes....
1.
Carrot Cake
slightly adapted from here

300gr all-purpose flour
10 oz carrots, grated
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp salt
300gr white granulated sugar
50gr dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 180ο C. Butter and flour a cake pan or small pans or use a cupcake pan lined with cases. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper.
In a bowl mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt very well. Put carrots into a large mixing bowl. Add the flour mixture to the carrots and toss until they are well-coated with flour.
In the bowl of a food processor, combine sugars, eggs and yogurt. While the processor is running, drizzle in the oil slowly.
Pour this mixture into the carrots and stir just until combined.
Pour into the prepared cake pan and bake for 45 min.
Reduce the heat to 160o C and bake for another 20 min or until the cake is ready testing it with a skewer to see that the centre is done.
Remove the pan from the oven and allow cake to cool 15 min. Then turn the cake out onto a rack and allow it to cool completely.
It is great with both cream cheese frosting and just dusted with confectioner's sugar.

Lovely and moist!

2.
I tried to make a Red Velvet cake using beets. I didn't like the result. The taste and the colour and the texture.... It was all wrong!
I will not give you the recipe, because quite frankly I threw it away. There is no need for more people to throw away good ingredients....

I will show you some pictures:

This is the beet purre. The colour is amazing!

Also the colour of the cake batter is perfect!

The pre-baking perfection ended. This is the baked cake and it is brown.

The finished cake.

It is not a Red Velvet. Sure, you can call it Cocoa Beet cake, but not Red Velvet....


Any way, I am so glad with the Carrot Cake recipe, that I have baked it twice already.

Thank you for the grate Challenge Ruth!

Louise