Classic Panna Cotta {Italy}

One of the first dessert which I actually made myself (looong ago, a coffee version of it). The famous Italian panna cotta doesn't need extra recommendation. Those of you who tasted it know: heaven on Earth. Those of you who haven't tried it yet: no time to lose! ;)

Recipe taken from: Laura Zavan's book Italian (One Step at a Time) and a very old issue of Lubię gotować magazine.

Serves: makes 4. Preparation: 27 min. + 1 h cooling + 3 h chilling in the fridge.

Equipment:

- saucepan,

- whisk,

- 4 teacups or ramekins,

- small bowl,

- 4 plates,

- blender (optional)

Ingredients:

- 550ml double cream,

- 2 tsp gelatine,

- 2 tbsp granulated sugar,

- 1 vanilla pod,

- a handfull of strawberries/other fruit/favourite dessert sauce

Method:

1) Pour the cream into the saucepan.

2) Cut the vanilla pod in half lengthwise and add it to the cream.

3) Heat the cream for 3 min, stirring from time to time.

4) Add the gelatine and sugar, and stir until the mixture is brought to the boil. Remove it from the heat.

5) Remove the pod halves and scrape out the remaining seeds with a knife. Add them to the mixture and stir.

6) Leave it to cool for 5 min., stirring form time to time.

7) Wash the cups/ramekins in cold water and dry them.

8) Divide the mixture between the four dishes and leave them to cool for an hour.

9) After that place the ramekins in the fridge for 3 hours.

10) In the meantime wash and dry the strawberries, and mix them in a blender, to make a smooth sauce (or, you can just smash them with a fork :)).

11) (After 3 h) fill a small bowl with boiling water.

12) One after another, immerse the ramekins almost entirely into the water for 10-15 seconds and immediately turn them out onto the plates.

13) Serve with strawberry sauce (or other sauce) :)

Taste.

Welcome in heaven :)

Lemon & strawberry dimples

I got back home an started preparing my dinner, when all of a sudden I noticed that over a half of biscuits that I've prepared the day before were gone! Like, really gone! HALF of them! What on earth?! Just a few moments ago the plate was full of them!... Hmmm. I looked around. Nobody else but me in the flat. All alone. And that means one. single. thing. It was me. It's all my doing. I made half of the delicious, crunchy, scrumptious, omg-sooo-goood biscuits gone. Before dinner! That's unthinkable! Ohhh, but they were sooooo gooood..........

Recipe taken from here.

Makes about 45 biscuits. Preparation: 42 min. + 1 h (chilling in the fridge). Baking: 2 x 15 min.

Equipment:

- bowl,

- zest grater,

- hand mixer (or standing mixer),

- 2 biscuit trays,

- 2 sheet baking paper,

- cling film,

- thimble or bottle cap (about 1,5-2 cm in diameter)

Ingredients:

- 170g soft butter,

- 2 cups all-purpose flour,

- 1/4 cup granulated sugar,

- 1/2 cup powdered sugar,

- 1 egg,

- zest of 1 lemon,

- 1 tbsp lemon juice,

- 1 tbsp vanilla extract,

- 1 tbsp baking powder,

- jam (I used strawberry) and/or lemon curd

Method:

1) In the bowl put the butter and sugars, and mix (2 min.) until light and fluffy.

2) Add the egg, vanilla extract, lemon zest and juice, and mix well.

3) With the mixer on low speed, carefully add the baking powder and the flour, mixing until incorporated.

4) Form the dough into a ball, wrap it in cling film and put into the fridge for 1 hour.

5) After that, preheat your oven to 350F/180C.

6) Line the trays with baking paper.

7) Form small balls of dough, about 3 cm in diameter, place them on the trays and flatten them a bit. Keep them 2 inches/5 cm apart form one another.

8) With the thimble or bottle cap make a deep indentation in evey biscuit and, using a teaspoon, fill it with jam or lemon curd.

9) Bake for 15 min., until the edges become golden brown (in the meantime prepare the rest of the dimples on the other tray).

10) Let them cool first a few of minutes on the tray and then transfer on a wire rack to cool completely.

Make sure you keep them in an airtight container. Seal them or sth. Put them on the highest shelf in the house. And I mean the highest.

Wait. That won't work at all. Vacuum-cleaner mode on.

'Noble' kiflis

Often in my morning bus I meet A. (age 17), and we usually spend the 15 min. together, unbelievably squeezed between other passengers, on a nice little chat. But lately, A. surprised me drawing out of her backpack beautiful yeast kiflis, which she made the previous evening with her mum. They may appear simple and perhaps at first glance they wouldn't catch your attention, but that absolutely marvelous taste of yeast pastry!...mmmm.... (oops! I'm dreaming away ;)). After devouring such a kifli, I demanded the recipe ;) . Here it comes.

(Recipe and name (a pun on A.'s surname) by A.'s mum).

Serves: makes 32 kiflis. Preparation: 26 min. + 1 h. Baking: 4 x 10 min.

Equipment:

- small and large bowl,

- mixer (optional),

- saucepan or microwave,

- clean cloth,

- rolling pin,

- baking brush,

- 2 baking trays,

- 2 sheets of baking paper

Ingredients:

- 500g (about 3 1/3 cup) flour + some for spreading on pastry board,

- 40g yeast,

- 250ml (1 cup) sour cream (I used one with 18% fat),

- 2 eggs + 1 for spreading on the surface of kiflis,

- 100g (1/2 cup) white granulated sugar,

- 80g unsalted butter,

- pinch of salt,

- marmalade/jam/lemon curd/etc. for the filling

Method:

In the smaller bowl, mix together (with a spoon) the yeast and sugar.

Add the cream and mix well.

Melt the butter in the saucepan or microwave and let it cool for a bit.

In the larger bowl, thoroughly mix together (using the mixer/spoon/your own clean hand :)) the flour, 2 eggs, yeast mixture, butter and salt.

Use the piece of clean cloth to cover the bowl, and set it aside for an hour.

Divide the dough into four equal portions.

Preheat your oven to 180C/350F.

Take one portion of the dough and roll it into a circle of 30cm in diameter.

Divide it into 8 parts, pizza-styled ;)

Put a teaspoon of the filling on the wider side of every triangle and tightly roll it into a croissant-shape kifli; place them on the baking tray.

In a small bowl lightly beat the egg with a fork.

Cover the surface of kiflis with a thin layer of the egg mixture, using a baking brush.

Bake for 10 min.

In the meantime prepare the next part of the dough in the same manner. (And do the same with the rest.)

Let the kiflis cool before serving.

Bon appétit!

Lemon curd

I've always, always, always(!) wanted to make it! :D

According to a certain online encyclopedia ;), in 19th and 20th century England, lemon curd was served with bread, scones, biscuits, and other treats at afternoon teas - as an alternative to jam. Today, apart from the above, it's used as icing for cakes; it's being spread on toasts, waffles, pancakes, and muffins :) You can also add it to yoghurt(!), to achieve a refreshing taste. Sadly, it does not keep as well as jam - you've got to use it within two weeks. But how about a jar of it, anyway? :)

Recipe found at BBC Food.

Serves: two 250-300ml/9 oz jars. Preparation: 35 min. Cooking: 10-13 min.

Equipment:

- 2 jars,

- zest grater,

- juice squeezer,

- heatproof bowl,

- saucepan,

- small bowl,

- whisk or fork

Ingredients:

- 4 lemons,

- 200g caster sugar,

- 100g butter,

- 3 eggs + 1 egg yolk

Method:

Heat oven to 160C/320F.

Wash the jars in very warm , soapy water, dry them with a towel, place on a baking tray and sterilize them in the oven for about 10-15 min.

In the meantime, wash the lemons, grate their peel, and squeeze the juice from them.

Take out the jars and let them cool.

Half fill the saucepan with water andbring it to the boil.

Put the butter, lemon juice and zest in a heatproof bowl, and put it on the saucepan with gently simmering water, stirring from time to time, until the butter melts completely and the mixture becomes smooth.

Lightly whisk the eggs and egg yolk, and stir it into the mixture.

Leave it to cook for about 10-13 min., stirring from time to time.

The curd should have the consistency of custard, and it will continue to thicken in the jars.

Remove the mixture from the saucepan and put it aside to cool, again, stirring from time to time.

Once it cooled, pour it into the jars and seal.

Keep it in the fridge.

Orange breakfast muffins

They were haunting me from the moment I read the recipe ;) so I thought that it's high time to bake them. At first glance, they may seem nothing special, but the proof of the pudding is in the eating, as they say, and here the very way how to eat them is indeed intriguing.

Recipe from Nigella's book 'Nigella bites'.

Serves: 12 muffins. Preparation: 15 min. Baking: 16-18 min.

Equipment:

- zest grater,

- juice squeezer,

- saucepan or microwave ;),

- 2 bolws, 

- whisk or spoon,

- muffin tin,

- muffin cases

Ingredients:

* dry:

- 250g (1 2/3 cup) flour,

- 25g (2 tbsp) ground almonds,

- 1/2 tsp baking soda,

- 2 tsp baking powder,

- 75g (1/3 cup) granulated sugar,

* wet:

- 75g unsalted butter,

- 1 large orange,

- 100ml (ca 1/2 cup) milk,

- 1 egg

Method:

Melt the butter in a saucepan or in the microwave and let cool it to room temperature.

Preheat your oven to 200ºC/390ºF.

Grate the orange peel.

In a bowl, whisk toghether the dry ingredients along with the orange zest..

Squeeze the juice from the orange.

In another bowl, stir together the wet ingredients: juice, milk, cooled butter and egg.

Pour the wet mixture to the flour mixture and mix only until incorporated.

Fill the muffin cases with batter.

Bake 16-18 min, until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

Let them cool for a few minutes.

Serve while still warm: cut them in half with a knife, and spread some delicious jam, honey, good quality buttes (that's right!) or lemon curd (recipe forthcoming ;)) on them. 

Divine. :)

Lemon biscuits

Simple, quick, fragnant, crunchy, with a cup of morning coffee, or of afternoon tea, for a picnic, for work, for every-day routines, for celebrations, when you're grinning, when you're blue, for yourself, your children, your guests - any reason will do: grab a lemon biscuit ;)

Recipe taken from KUCHNIA magazine (issue 10/2011).

Serves: 20 biscuits. Preparation: about 15 min. Baking: 20 min.

Equipment:

- zest grater,

- bowl,

- mixer,

- rolling pin,

- biscuit cutter,

- baking paper,

- baking tray

Ingredients:

- 120g butter,

- 120g (1/2 cup + 1 tbsp) granulated sugar,

- 2 egg yolks,

- zest of 2 lemons,

- 150g (1 cup + 1 tbsp) flour,

- 110g (3/4 cup) potato starch,

- powdered sugar (for sprinkling)

Method:

In a bowl, mix the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (ca. 2 min.).

Preheat your oven to 160C/320F.

Add the egg yolks, lemon zest and both flours to the mixture.

Mix until incorporated.

Roll the dough out to about 1 cm (1/2 inch) thick sheet.

Line the tray with baking paper.

Cut out biscuit in variuos shapes and place them on the tray.

Bake for about 20 min., until golden brown.

Let them cool on the tray for a few minutes, and then put them on a wire rack to cool completely.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving.

Caution!: they disappear in a blink of an eye ;)

Mini-Mazureks

OK. "What in the hay is a Mazurek??" - if this question was the very first thought upon seeing this post - well, I'm not surprised ;) let me explain:

A Mazurek is a traditional Polish cake, baked specifically for Easter. From the technical-baking perspective it's really nothing special: just a piece of shortcrust pastry (the one you use e.g. for pies or tarts). But (!) from the decorative perspective, it's something more ;) for a Mazurek would definitely not be a true Mazurek if not for the decoration of its surface. Usually, people cover it with an icing based on either chocolate or oranges, or dulce de leche, and decorate it  with almonds or nuts, often writing "Hallelujah!" or "Happy Easter!" with chocolate icing.

Fascinating.

Now, let me tell you what I found in the latest issue of KUCHNIA magazine: a recipe for Mini-Mazureks. And what an adorable recipe it is! Presented by pastry chef Iga Sarzyńska, they're covered with fondant icing and decorated with all kinds of sprinkles and satin ribbons (you don't want to eat THEM). I fell in love with them instatnly!

OK, OK, enough with this longish word production. Let's bake some Mini-Mazureks!

Serves: 2 baking trays of mini-mazureks. Preparation: 40 min. + 1 h refrigeration + about 1 h decoration. Baking: 2 x 12 min.

Equipment:

- bowl,

- mixer with whisk attachment and spiral beaters/dough hook attachement,

- cling film,

- rolling pin,

- biscuit cutters (best in simple shapes),

- 2 baking trays,

- 2 sheets of baking paper,

- 2 saucepans,

- a large metal bowl or pot,

- piping bag with a narrow decorating tip (optional in simpler decorations)

Ingredients:

* for the mini-mazureks:

- 180g soft unsalted butter,

- 170g (1 1/4 cup) powdered sugar,

- 1 egg,

- 1/4 tsp salt,

- 1/5 tsp vanilla extract,

- seeds of 1 vanilla pod (I just added more extract),

- 330g (2 cups + 1 tbsp) flour

* for the fondant icing:

- 3 tsp gelatin,

- 50ml (1/4 cup) cold water,

- 600g (4-4,5 cup) powdered sugar,

- 75g (less than 1/2 cup) grape sugar (glucose)

* for (plain) icing:

- 1 egg white,

- 1-1,5 cup powdered sugar,

- juice of 1/4 lemon

Method:

In a bowl, beat the butter until light and fluffly (ca. 2 min; with the whisk attachment).

Add in the powdered sugar and mix well.

Mix in the egg, salt, and vanilla extract (and seeds).

Form the dough into a ball, wrap it in cling film, and refrigerate for an hour.

Preheat your oven to 180ºC/350ºF.

Line the trays with baking paper.

Roll the dough out to about 5 mm thick sheet. 

Cut out biscuits and place them on the trays.

Bake for about 12-15 min, until golden brown.

In the meantime, prepare the fondant icing:

Pour the cold water into a glass, pour in the gelatine, stir, and leave for a few minutes.

Fill one saucepan up halfway with water and heat it until it begins to simmer.

Put the gelatin into the smaller saucepan, add the grape sugar, and stir the mixture over the pan with gently simmering water, making sure the water is not touching the bottom of the saucepan. Stir until smooth.

Pour the mixture into a metal bowl or pot and let it cool a bit.

With the spiral beaters/dough hook attachement, gradually mix in the powdered sugar.

At the beginning the icing will be very (very) sticky.

On the left - mixture after adding 2 cups of powdered sugar. On the right -  the final result.

If the mixture turns out too thin, add a bit more powdered sugar.

Mold the icing and place it on a pastry board covered with some powdered sugar.

Roll it out to about 2 mm thick sheet. 

Cut out shapes with the same biscuit cutter as the mini-mazureks.

If you end up having more fondant icing than you need, you can store it, wrapped tightly in cling film in a dry, dark and cool place.

Prepare the (plain) icing (I used ready-to-use icing tubes):

In a bowl, mix toghether (using either a mixer or a spoon) all the ingredients. Thoroughly. No lumps allowed.

he icing has to be very thick - it can't run down the biscuits. 

Pour it into a piping bag.

Spread the cooled mini-mazureks with a thin layer of (plain) icing, or pipe an icing line about 1 cm (1/2 inch) from the edge of the biscuits. Place the fondant icing on top and gently press.

Decorate at will ;)