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Strawberry Rhubarb Pie. Three words I never would have put together on my own. You see, I don't love cooked strawberries, except in a jam-like state. And, rhubarb and I have previously been unacquainted.
Read MoreMy daughter bought me a beautiful cookbook last Christmas, Stéphane Raynaud's 365 good reasons to sit down and eat, that included this wonderful gluten-free almond chocolate cake.
When she was about five years old, I asked my daughter what kind of cake she'd like for her birthday party. Without hesitation, she announced that she wanted a flour-less chocolate torte. Very clear where she was taking her food cues from, even at that early stage.
I hadn't yet changed my diet to gluten-free, but always loved the rich, dense quality of a good flour-less torte. I guess I made it often enough that Isabella came to think of this as the norm. Eight years later, she still loves this type of cake. When we were going through the book, and found this recipe, I knew it would be the first thing I made.
It has taken me three-qaurters of a year to get to baking this cake. It was so much fun to try my hand at a completely different version of the flour-less torte than I had ever made before. The ground almonds (which I didn't grind quite as fine as I should have) keep the cake together and make the cake taste nutty and delicious.
This gluten-free treat takes some time. Do not rush, you have to whip the egg whites and then the yolks, melt the chocolate and the butter, grind the nuts...all the steps should be done at a leisurely pace. Otherwise, you end up like me: running back and forth between the stove and the mixer, dropping ground almond all over the floor, and getting egg yolks on your camera. OK, maybe not the camera part, because I'm assuming that most of you are not shooting each step as you go. But, I think you get my drift. Enjoy the ride.
Up to this point, I've never considered myself much of a baker, but I'm beginning to warm up to it. I love the scientific nature of putting all the right ingredients in the mix and then magically getting a wonderful treat at the end. My favorite part was watching the egg whites froth up into foamy peaks and then settle into this nice soft mounds.
The cake turned out a little soft. I don't think it was baked wrong, or mixed incorrectly. I do think I should have gone with my first instinct and used a springform pan, or a tart pan with a removable bottom. That way, the cake bottom would have been supported the whole time, instead of trying to transfer it to a plate for serving on it's own.
A wonderful dessert for Fall, especially if you serve it with a nice berry jam (that maybe you made back in the summer) and a hot cup of tea.
from Stéphan Reynaud's 365 good reasons to sit down to eat
I was looking at the DailyBuzz Moms site today and stumbled across my Strawberry, Sage and Grapefruit Granita on their Top 9!
Loving that I'm featured and can't wait to try the Blackberry Lime Tarts from Thyme of Taste's website.
Click on over to see the feature and check out some of the other recipes while you are there.
Cinnamon-sugar, almonds, butter and salt. The ingredients for a fantastic little sweet treat, which is just what I was in search of.
I had a choice of walnuts, pecans, cashews or almonds. The almonds were already slivered and raw, so I went with them. This recipe is really adaptable, you can use any kind of nut (although I'd stay away from peanuts).
While I was eating these I realized they could be an accompaniment for savory dishes as well as sweet ones. These cinnamon-sugar almonds would be great in oatmeal or included in a rice pudding. For a savory use, serve them up with a really crispy-skinned glazed chicken and roasted Brussels sprouts. To add some texture and another level of flavor, stir a portion of cinnamon-sugar almonds into saffron rice with shrimp.
Add in a variety of spices, experiment a bit to see what flavor mixes work well together for you. Smoked paprika would go nicely with the sugar and butter, alongside the cinnamon. Have some fun and enjoy!
Strawberry Rhubarb Pie. Three words I never would have put together on my own. You see, I don't love cooked strawberries, except in a jam-like state. And, rhubarb and I have previously been unacquainted.
Read MoreIt's time for Mother's Day! I am so very excited to see what my daughter has up her sleeve this year. In honor of Mom, I'm posting some very nice sweet recipes you can make ahead and bring to Mom. The lemon curd and the granola make several servings that you can bottle and distribute to your mom, grandmother, stepmother, godmother or whatever lady is the fabulous mom-figure in your life.
You can also check out my piece on Mother's Day with links to 3 more great recipes here.
Enjoy and happy mother's day!
What were the odds that I would happen to have a piece of fabric with apples and pears on it to present this lovely crisp? Slim to none, I'd say.
I hadn't pre-planned including the pears in the crisp, but as luck would have it, I ran out of apples and had to combine the two fruits. The mix of the flavors turned out well: one bit might be all apple, the next all pear, or you may get two-for-one!
I've never made a crisp before. We were invited upstairs to dinner with our fabulous neighbors. When they came down to invite us over, I asked what I could bring. Somehow, the topic of a crisp came up and knowing that they liked my granola, I offered to make one.
Pastry dough and I aren't generally friends, but I am good at cutting and mixing things, so this was the perfect project for me. And, I found a funny little knife that made the fruit into crinkle cuts. I think it's meant to be used for potatoes, but it worked just fine on my pears and apples. You can't go wrong with the combination of flavors here: butter, vanilla, lemon, cinnamon, fruit and oats. And it's the easiest thing I've made for a dessert in a long time.
The neighbors loved it. I think this will go into my regular rotation of easy, take-along desserts. Hope you like it.
adapted from Simply Recipes
serves 4
Ingredients:
Method:
