bounty chocolate: sweet

Showing posts with label sweet. Show all posts

Showing posts with label sweet. Show all posts

Cashew blondies

“Videodrome” was on TV the other day and I was dying to watch it again – I saw it when I was a teenage girl – but I was so sleepy I could barely watch the first 5 minutes. One thing I did not recall about the movie was Debbie Harry as part of the cast, and that made me curious.

Speaking of Ms. Harry, I have blondies for you today. ;)

Cashew blondies
from here

½ cup (113g/1 stick) unsalted

Lemon cranberry madeleines and being repetitive

I don’t mean to sound like a broken record, but I have to bring this subject up again: not only is “Love Lost” an amazing song but its video is equally wonderful – click here and then tell me if you agree with me. Or not (just so you know it, I’m a complete sucker for music videos). ;)

And speaking of being repetitive, I’m bringing lemon madeleines back – with dried cranberries, this time.

Coconut orange tea cake and things that make me wanna scream

I’m going to share something with you, even though you might think I’m crazy: there are times when certain things are so, so good I feel like screaming (for the record, I don’t actually scream). ;)

Off the top of my head I remember feeling like that after watching “Stay” and "Inception", listening to The Temper Trap’s “Love Lost” (especially from 1min50seg on), and more recently, this cake. An

Chocolate orange ganache tart and all's well that ends well

I started writing this post with EBTG’s “When all’s well” playing in my mind; I explain: this tart is a result of some stressful moments, but it all worked out fine in the end.

The initial idea was baking this tart to finish up the marmalade jar I’d bought for Nigel Slater’s cake. I’d already thawed some really good pastry I had in the freezer and lined the tart pan with it; after that, I made

Nibby nut and raisin cookies

I’ll be really honest with you and tell you right up front that I only made these cookies because I needed to finish up a bag of cocoa nibs (there are still some nibs left; I guess they’re kind of Gremlins, too). But the comments about these at the office were so amazing I beg you to make them, too, even if you have go out and buy a bag of nibs; I know I might sound like a shopping maniac – my

Banana sheet cake with fudgy chocolate frosting and a forgotten book

When I was a kid all my friends were tall and strong, unlike me – I had a sort of development delay, so to speak (due to my mom’s death) and I was very tiny. Can you imagine how much I loved P.E. classes? #not
I was always picked last for everything and I don’t blame my colleagues: I could barely hold a basketball, let alone play with it.
I’ve had this book for years and had only baked from it

Apple cranberry muffins and good/bad decisions

There are moments in life when we make certain decisions because they seem so right, but in the end they are incredibly wrong – I’ve watched “Water for Elephants” and I’m sure Christoph Waltz is feeling oh, so miserable right now. I don’t mean to be rude, but he should have known better: one does not choose Francis Lawrence over David Cronenberg – the horror, the horror – especially if they’re

Orange lime jelly

We all have our favorites: the little black dress for special occasions, the CD that is always on the glove compartment, or the movie we watch over and over again and never tire of. Lately I’ve been feeling the same way about jellies – they’re the first thing that pops in my mind when I want to make (and eat) spoon desserts. I guess that once the days get colder here I might change my mind, but

Gooey chocolate cake with raspberries and something positive about getting old

Getting older is not a walk in the park – gray hair, anyone? – but there is definitely a positive side to it. I’ve become a more patient person, and let me tell you, patience was never one of my virtues.

After baking and unmolding this delicious cake – oh, it was really delicious and I’m no chocoholic – the result almost made me cry: the poor thing looked ugly as hell on the plate. A glance

Peanut butter brownies + your comments on a certain post

I’ve been thinking about the comments you left on my post about Gwyneth Paltrow’s cookbook and thought I might have been misunderstood by some: I agree with the fact that some people are naturally thin and can eat tons of food without gaining 1 single pound – I have cousins and friends that way. Nothing against those people – I wish I were one of them! :D
And I don’t think that one has to be

Nibby financiers

Certain smells, movies, songs – or even certain words – automatically remind us of certain people. In today’s case, it’s food that brings me two lovely friends of mine to mind – it’s impossible for me to bake financiers without thinking of @liliantrigo and Paula. :D

Nibby financiers
adapted from Rose's Heavenly Cakes

2/3 cup (66g) almond meal
1/3 cup + ½ tablespoon (51g) all purpose flour
¾

Double chocolate chip cookies - from skinny cooks to skinny cookies

A while ago I was talking to Fezoca (via Twitter) about Gwyneth Paltrow’s cookbook – I have to say I wasn’t (and still am not) all that excited about it. I think she’s a beautiful woman, can sing really well, but would never make it to my list of favorite actresses – I find her really limited as far as acting is concerned. Anyway, that has nothing to do with the cookbook thing – what doesn’t

Vanilla flan with gingerbread crumbs

Those of you who – sometimes – devour lunch with an eye on dessert, please, raise your hand. 0/

I made a beautiful, delicious salad with tuna – from this book – for lunch and, even though I happily savored each bite of it, I was really interested in trying this flan. :)

And since I know you are all so dear and won’t judge me, there goes the recipe. :D

Vanilla flan with gingerbread crumbs

Wholemeal apple and marmalade cake

Back in 2009 my dear friend Valentina introduced me to Nigel Slater – it was love at first sight. His delicious recipes, beautiful garden and passionate way of speaking about food – clear without being patronizing – were a perfect combination.

I really do not know why it took me so long to buy one of his books, but I certainly started with a wonderful one. This cake is absurdly tender –

Mini raspberry cheesecakes and trusting your instincts

Something I’ve been trying to do more often is to trust my instincts, but sometimes I fail miserably at doing so – and deeply regret it afterwards.

Take this recipe, for instance: the mini cheesecakes looked adorable on the book, but after reading the recipe I wasn’t so keen on the idea of making the batter using an electric mixer – it would add too much air to the mixture, so a food processor

Pecan, coconut and lemon bars

I’m a creature of habits, and I’m OK with that.

Going through Amanda Hasser’s amazing compilation of recipes, my heart stood still when I read the words “lemon” and “bars”; I immediately thought that you’ve already seen enough lemon bars around here, but I went on and read the recipe anyway. I’m so glad I did: these were not regular lemon bars. These were a match made in heaven of a chewy,

Texas sheet cake

Grandma-style-cake again – but this time, there’s chocolate involved. ;)

I needed a large cake – the idea was to share it with 12 of my coworkers – and the Texas sheet cake recipe I found at "Bon Appétit Desserts" seemed perfect [yes, I am obsessed with this book, and I know how understanding you all are]. ;)

Both the cake and the icing were delicious and were wonderful together – a day after

Lemon molasses marble cake - a cake with a workout

This cake was the first recipe I tried from this book, which is full of amazing recipes and perfect for a sweet tooth like me; lemon cake, no surprise there, but the idea of marbling it with a molasses cake sounded too good not to try.

Indeed the flavor combo is delicious and the cake is very tender; do not be put off by the different steps of preparation – think of them as a great workout,

Peaches and cream ice pops - updated

My summer issue of the DH mag has finally arrived, but unfortunately summer is already gone. I could not resist the ice pops spread, though – each and every flavor looked so good I would have to make at least one. :)
My initial idea was making the raspberry yogurt popsicles, but I’d used my raspberries in other recipes. Luckily I still had a couple of peaches – the last ones of the season – and

Rice pudding with rhubarb compote and homemade meringues

Another rhubarb recipe – please, bear with me. :)

The idea for this dessert came from "Jamie at Home" – he uses strawberries for it – the rice pudding is Sophie Dahl’s – have I told how much I love this book? :) – and the rhubarb compote and the meringues are the ones left from the mini pavlovas. Does that sound messy? I bet that not as messy as the dessert itself. Nor as delicious. ;)

I ate