Happy Birthday to meeeee! This year, 2020, I turned 28 years old. Golly that sounds like I should have my life together. Sorry past Lar, you will probably never totally feel like you have your life together. But We can continue to be grateful for all that is wonderful in your life and all there is to celebrate... and let me tell you there sure is lots to celebrate!! No crazy celebrations though this year, because we are in the thick of a global pandemic and I'm not even allowed to go to my parent's house. Thank goodness I live with two wonderful friends who surprised me with this cute kitchen banner to make me feel special. Later on I picked up my guy and brought him over and we had a tiny party with PIZZAAAA and silly games. And of course I made dessert.
It's essentially like the comforting chocolate puddings that Ma would make on a weeknight, you know, the Jell-o packet kind. Put that on an oreo cookie crust, throw on some whipped cream and SPRINKLES and we have ourselves a birthday party pie. It's something you definitely want to eat. Even despite eating waaaayyy too much pizza. There's always room for chocolate. I continued to eat small slivers of this every night for a week after my birthday was over, as one should. Chocolate Cream PieRecipe slightly adapted from Martha Stewart Crust:
Filling:
Place the powdered gelatin in a small bowl and pour the water over top. Let this mixture sit for 5 minutes or so to soften (also called "blooming"... what a lovely phrase) the gelatin. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks, then slowly whisk the hot milk mixture into the egg yolks to temper them. Return the whole mix to the pot (what a lot of back and forth!) and continue cooking the custard over medium heat, stirring all the while, until the pudding is once again thick and bubbles are appearing in the middle... about 1-2 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat, add the softened gelatin, stirring until it is dissolved into the pudding. Also stir in the vanilla. Yum! Let the pudding cool for a few minutes ever so slightly, stirring frequently so it doesn't form a skin on top, before you pour the whole shebang over your baked cookie crust! Use a spatula to spread the pudding evenly and flat over the crust, give it a few taps on the counter for good measure, cover the top with plastic wrap (prevent that puddin' skin) and place the whole pie in the fridge to firm up that filling... about 4 hours minimum. Waiting is the hardest part. Topping:
0 Comments
Actually called Dutch Baby but also called Oven-Puff-Pancakes and also known as Crepe-Shake!! Fantastic variety of strange names but whatever you call it, I'm a fan! It's like a sweet yorkshire pudding that you can eat for breakfast. It's pleasantly chewy and subtly spiced with cinnamon and fresh nutmeg so all ya gots to do is top it with some berries, a dust of powdered sugar, a dollop of plain greek yogurt and a kiss of maple syrup and eat it right out of the pan... cuz this bebe serves one! (Double the recipe if you want to serve you and your bebe) Dutch Baby Pancakerecipe adapted from Renee Kohlman
It's like a portable rhubarb crisp! I imagine that most folks can get down with a rhubarb crisp/ rhubarb crumble bar... but perhaps I lost some of you at BASIL. But wait! Don't go! Ya gotta try it before you judge. I too was skeptical at first because upon first think, basil = pesto = pizza = savoury... BUT Basil has a place in the land of sweet things too! Quite a lovely place I might add. Basil has a lovely brightness and floral note... and it has kind of a sweetness of it's own... When paired with the right things, basil is a lovely addition to sweet treats! The basil in these bars does not remind me of pesto or pizza whatsoever. It is more like a lovely fruity complement to the rhubarb, not overpowering, just subtly adding it's flair. The cookie base of this is extra delish because I like to toast the oats, making them taste rich and nutty. The rhubarb filling is not too sweet, in fact it's pretty tart. But I think it balances everything out nicely. If it's too sour for you, stir in a couple extra spoonfuls of strawberry jam or sugar to taste. Rhubarb-Basil Oatmeal Crumble BarsRecipe adapted from Sticky Fingers Green Thumb for the rhubarb compote:
It's Wednesday! I'm the temporary owner of my Aunt's waffle iron! Let's make weird waffles! Temporary owner because my Aunt is currently on some strange diet in which she will not be making waffles for herself... I'm not sure I approove of this form of living however I do approve of me having a waffle iron in my life. So... I will not say anything and be here in my kitchen whipping up batters of various flavours and seeing just what wonders I can waffle. Cinnamon raisin bread is a fan favourite so why not cinnamon raisin waffles?! Add some whole wheat flour not because we righteous, but because we like FLAVOUR. Highly recommend indulging with peanut butter and syrup... breakfast comfort supreme. Smells amazing! Whole Wheat Cinnamon Raisin Wafflesrecipe from Dorie Greenspan
April showers bring May cupcakes with flowers! Signs of spring are in the air and the trees and plants in the neighbourhood are starting to flower and the world needs a good dose of pretty!! I'm pretty sure these cupcakes were designed to be "Mother's Day" appropriate... but not for my mama. She would 100% go for chocolate or coffee over roses and pink... but these are still fun to make. Also I've never used rosewater before so that was something new and fun. The cupcakes are not overly rose-y flavoured... and to be honest I wish they had more raspberry-rose flavour to them! They are pretty mild. But very nice. I even added a little bit more rosewater than the recipe requires... Which I would recommend BUT IF YOU DO... flavour with caution! As you don't want cupcakes that taste like soap. We're going for floral-garden vibes... not grandma's powder room. Finished off with a dusting of rose petals because they are one of my new favourite garnishes! Not only does it make the cupcakes look pretty, but it lightly perfumes them with a pleasant floral-y scent. Super girly... but sometimes that is just fun, okay?! Raspberry Rose CupcakesRecipe from Food Network Magazine CUPCAKES
BUTTERCREAM
TIS THE SEASON!!! The BBQ SEASON! And I couldn't be more excited... because I am now the proud owner of the littlest, cutest camping bbq. Little Red. The Baby-Q. My shiny new toy! Let the grilling begin! And what better time to get the party started than the kick-off of the May long weekend. It just feels right, you know? Also, I've had some burgers taking up valuable space in my freezer for quite some time now, but I've been holding off cooking them until I could get my hands on a BBQ... Because that is the truly the best and perhaps only way I want to cook burgers. Thanks to my awesome brother, he made this gal's grill-dreams come true! I was originally going to BBQ-sit his "big-boy" real BBQ... however it turns out he doesn't require those services anymore and wants his BBQ for himself. Which is entirely fair and understandable. However I was left thinking... "But how will I survive the summer sans-grill?" When I grow up I know I will buy a Big-Girl BBQ... but in the meantime he came up with a brilliant compromise to suit my urgent and immediate needs by gifting me a brand new tiny red camping BBQ that he had no use for! He even dropped it off at my house, with propane to boot! (I thanked him with some Sidewalk Citizen pizza dough). What a guy. I love my bro. And I love my new BBQ! HAPPY DAYS! Naturally I had to make my own burger buns... which I sprinkled with the last little bit of my homemade "Everything" spice blend. But you could sprinkle these buns with just about anything your heart desires or your pantry inspires... herbs, spices, seeds, etc. I also whipped up some of my new favourite ingredient/condiment that I want to put on everything: Pickled red onions!!! They are the bees knees I tell ya! And soooo easy to make. A great use for the rather large half of a red onion that was begging to be utilized in my fridge... A jar of jewel toned magic I tell you! Burger Bunsrecipe slightly adapted from Noel Richardson makes 6 buns
Pickled Red onionsrecipe slightly adapted from Michael Smith
Cupcakes for April!! Of course April, the month of easter, gets a carrot-cake-themed cupcake to celebrate this lovely month. April this year has been unlike any other month the world has ever seen due to COVID-19. We can't have all the big easter family gatherings in quite the same way we are used to. But I sure as heck can make a dozen cupcakes at home and deliver them to my family the next day. My ma and pa loved them... Ma's favourite kind of cake is a carrot cake. I'm partial to this recipe because the cake part contains toasted walnuts and candied ginger folded into the batter! SOLD. The topping is a candied carrot ribbon and a candied walnut. Which is just fun and cute. Rather than a dramatic swirl of frosting, we're keeping it simple with a smooth and elegant blob. I like it. She's a keeper. Carrot-Walnut CupcakesRecipe from Food Network Magazine Cupcakes:
I made these little tea-time-treats to celebrate the last day of Passover this year... now full confession I am not even a little bit Jewish, I do not normally celebrate passover. But I simply love celebrating and any excuse to bake and try a new recipe. And so, voila, thanks to owning a Nigella Lawson cookbook that has an entire chapter dedicated to Passover, I present these tiny flourless pretties. They are soft and sweet and spongey and happen to be gluten free... not that I even intended to make them for that reason either, more for the fact that I have some ground almonds kicking around that need to be loved. I JUST LIKE BAKING OKAY. So... here is a Passover-friendly-gluten-free dessert coming from a gal who is decidedly not Jewish and unassailably loves flour. Whoopsies! They are here because they are dainty and tasty and certainly pretty little things. Flourless Apple-Almond Tea CakesRecipe slightly adapted from Nigella Lawson
Happy Good Friday everyone! It sure is a Good Friday indeed. Why? Because we have a lovely recipe for Hot Cross Buns!!! I sure am not religious, however I love celebrating anything and everything, and ESPECIALLY anything that is themed around food... And so, Hot Cross Buns. I've made them once at home before and they didn't quite turn out. They tasted good, but they didn't rise and were little bread pucks. Unlike THESE BEAUTIES which are soft and fluffy and exactly what I dream of a hot cross bun to be. As a kid, my family would buy hot cross buns from our grocery store. And they were fine. But I never liked them... I'm pretty sure I was turned off by the weird rainbow coloured candied peel... I deemed them very much "old-lady" food. But here's the thing... I've grown older and wiser now and realized that minus the weird dried fruit, hot cross buns are just like a glorified fancy cinnamon-raisin bread... which I LOVE! And so... as a big girl who can make and bake her own decisions (and also because the grocery store had none...) I eliminated the candied peel and just used raisins instead :) These are not totally traditional in another sense... classic hot cross buns have a cross on them that is put on before the buns are baked. This cross is made with what is called "crossing paste" which varies by recipe but often contains milk, flour, eggs, butter and sugar... These guys are a little more simple, as their crosses are just made out of a simple icing sugar glaze and piped on top after the buns have been baked and are completely cooled. Simple, soft, slightly sweet... indeed these buns are quite a treat ;) Here's to all Friday's being Good! Happy Baking. Almost Classic Hot Cross BUnsRecipe slightly adapted from Canadian Living
The world feels very serious and very scary right now so it's more important than ever to remember the value in being FUN and being SILLY and being SWEET. Presenting: The wonky-whimsical-rainbow-loaf-cake! It hits all of those buttons. Ya'll are probably definitely thinking, but how did you get it shaped like a rainbow!? Well I have been fortunate enough to inherit many a random vintage baking supply from various family members and friends. I'm always so stoked when people want to give me their old or vintage baking supplies... a lot of the time they have something that they inherited and they have no idea what it should be used for! I love the fun challenge in figuring out what it was for, but also how I can use it, and maybe even use it in a different or creative way. I have a thing for strange shaped cake pans and so I am proud to be the owner of a ridged, u-shaped loaf pan. After a recent and unrelated google image search I have also seen this shape of pan being used as a mould for jell-o! So perhaps that is what it's original purpose is! But I love using it to bake loaf cakes in... especially because it's got those little ridges which make excellent markings for where to slice :) Of course, if you don't have a rainbow shaped pan, you can and should still bake this sweet little cake! Because not only does it look fun, it tastes lovely. It's a slightly but not overly sweet lemony-vanilla loaf that makes a great little snacking cake. You could layer the colours into a regular loaf pan, or into muffin tins, or make a cake... you get the idea just use whatever pan you fancy! And if rainbow is a few too many colours, just pick a few of your favourite colours and gently swirl them in the pan to make a whimsical marbled cake. The main point here is to get baking and have FUN. Rainbow Loafrecipe adapted from Food Network Magazine
|
Tiny Tea PartyIt's about celebrating the tiny things. Categories
All
© 2015 Larissa Costella
All Rights Reserved (All images and content are my own unless otherwise noted) |