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Sweet Things Archive
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Strawberries & Oranges Macerated in Brandy and Cinnamon
Posted on July 25, 2010 | 2 CommentsTweetStrawberries are delicious, I don’t know anyone who would argue with that. I love them just as they are mostly, but sometimes I like to give them a boost in flavour by soaking them in alcohol – it brings out the sweetness and creates a quite delicious result! Oranges and strawberries work well together and when you combine them with a little brandy, lemon juice and a hint of cinnamon they work even better.
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Spanish Orange Cake
Posted on April 20, 2010 | No CommentsTweetFans of the site will know that I occasionally stray from the wonders of lamb and beef and anything spicy to make a cake! Yes readers – I sometimes have the urge to go Suzy homemaker and whip up something sweet. Today I made a very easy cake using one of my favourite Spanish cookbooks as inspiration. The resulting cake “was” (as that is already past tense only 5 hours later) absolutely delicious. Oranges are one of my favourite fruits and this makes great use of them – a light, fluffy citrus burst of flavour. Perfect.
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Italian Breakfast Marble Cake
Posted on March 4, 2010 | No CommentsTweetI love a marble cake. It reminds me of my childhood. Nothing is better than a slab of this cake with a large cup of coffee. The cake’s perfect for me as it’s actually not too sweet – the perfect combination of chocolate with slight hints of citrus from the lemon. It’s a fabulous treat, any time of the day, but best served on a monday morning just before I head off for another week at work!
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Spiced Dough Pillows
Posted on September 9, 2009 | 1 CommentTweetThese gorgeous Spanish treats are just perfect on a lazy afternoon with a cup of coffee, which is exactly how I enjoyed them today. Not all of them but a fair few! The raw dough will freeze though so it’s a great one to have on hand if you’re in need of a quick sugar hit. The flavour is a great blend of sweet and spice which is very agreeable to me as I don’t much like things that are too sweet. That said, I can imagine these would be great dipped into some warm chocolate – I’ve inspired myself to defrost the remaining dough…
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Simple Chocolate Cake
Posted on September 1, 2009 | No CommentsTweetEasy is the operative word for this cake. I haven’t got the patience for faffing about with cakes normally, but I was cleaning out my cupboards this morning and noticed an abundance of duplicate ingredients. I had to get rid of them somehow so settled on a tried and tested recipe which never fails. This cake is easy and the results are light and fluffy with with a deliciously rich streak running through its centre. A perfect accompaniment to a Sunday afternoon cup of tea in front of The Antiques Roadshow. I’m old before my time…
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Cherry Tarts
Posted on August 20, 2009 | No CommentsTweetI had some pastry leftover from the delicious Lemon Tarts I made and was bizarrely craving something sweet again. I’m not really a big cake eater, and prefer something quite tangy over down and out sugar so opted for a happy medium in these lovely cherry & frangipane tarts. They are so easy to eat!
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Lemon Tarts
Posted on August 18, 2009 | No CommentsTweetTangy and delicious. 2 words which sum up these little delights perfectly. I love the sourness of lemon – that combined with the buttery sweet pastry is delicious. Now, you can serve these as a desert with some cream, raspberries or a drizzle of warm chocolate, but personally you can’t beat them with a cup of coffee as an afternoon treat. This recipe makes four 12cm tarts which quite frankly is pathetic and won’t last 2 minutes. It’ll also make one 12″ tart which may fair slightly better.
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Sticky Toffee Pudding
Posted on July 19, 2009 | No CommentsTweetThis is one of my favourite desserts. A lovely homely pudding which simply could not fail to warm every part of your body. The rich, creamy toffee is just delicious with the light, sweet and spongy cake it covers. Delicious beyond belief. A word of caution though is to not eat too much before hand. This dessert is quite heavy and rich and will easily tip you over the comfort gorge if you’re trying to squeeze it in after a large main course. You have been warned.
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Figs Stewed in Pomegranate Juice with Rose Water Cream
Posted on May 6, 2009 | 1 CommentTweet There’s one thing that marries perfectly with the subtle flavour of figs – pomegranate juice. Sharp and tangy and quite intense but somehow it doesn’t take over this dish. The fig comes through in texture and taste. This is a simple recipe to stew figs and served with some cream flavoured with some rose water for a touch of the exotic. It was light and fresh and pretty tasty too.
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Chocolate & Lime Mousse
Posted on April 28, 2009 | No CommentsTweet I don’t know what came over me today. I had a real craving for chocolate. I can’t remember ever having had it before as I’m not normally one for eating much of it. Anyway, I really wanted a mousse for some reason. So I made this. A lovely rich zingy mousse. Zing courtesy of a lime which I had hanging round the kitchen. It was deliciously light. The only criticism was that I divided it between 3 glasses and not 4 and subsequently had to have a little lie down such was my bloatedness.
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Plum Tart
Posted on April 22, 2009 | No CommentsTweet Plums were cheap as chips at the greengrocers today so I decided to buy a big bagful. I love them on their own, but baked into a tart even better! The kind of tart I love is the kind with frangipane surrounding the fruit. Much like a bakewell tart. I don’t know about you, but eating them just out of the oven is the way to go. I timed it so that it would be cool just in time for an afternoon coffee. It was lovely. It took all my will power to get some photographs done before tucking into it, but I just about managed.
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Raspberry Panna Cotta
Posted on April 14, 2009 | 1 CommentTweet I’m not really a desert person I must admit, but I do enjoy something sweet now and again. Not too sweet though which is why this was a winner. Panna cotta is a set milk pudding which is light and mousse-like. I adore raspberries and knew they would make a perfect addition to the dish. The resulting pudding was not too rich, not too sweet and had a lovely lingering raspberry flavour. Thank god I made four!
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Turkish Lime Yoghurt Cake
Posted on March 19, 2009 | 2 CommentsTweet This is MY kind of cake. Soft, light and tart. This classic Turkish cake is incredibly easy to make with hardly any ingredients. But it is filled with flavour and the loveliest texture – much like a baked cheesecake. I had a few limes left from a prior market whim purchase so changed the original recipe from lemons to limes. I prefer the taste of limes anyway and the cake didn’t suffer in the slightest.
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Spanish Week – #7: Torrijas
Posted on March 8, 2009 | 2 CommentsTweet Torrijas is Spain’s answer to French toast. The Spanish love to eat it for breakfast (especially around Easter time) and so do I. It’s incredibly easy to make and is perfect for using up old stale bread. The bread I used was like a breeze block but after many exclamations of “this won’t work” – it proved me wrong and worked perfectly. There was nobody more amazed than me! I savoured every delicious mouthful. It was the perfect way to end my week long consumption of Spanish food, of which I do hope you’ve enjoyed!
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Spanish Week – #5: Crema Catalana
Posted on March 6, 2009 | No CommentsTweet There is much bickering between France and Spain as to ownership of this dessert. Each claiming its heritage as theirs, each country insisting their version reigns supreme. In the great scheme of things, It would appear that France’s version “crème brûlée” wins the people’s vote as it’s the one everyone knows. However, the Spanish dish “Crema Catalana” is mightily tasty in it’s own right – Unlike crème brûlée, it’s flavoured with lemon, orange and cinnamon, and the cooking technique is easier too – dispensing of the fussy “bain marie”. I like crème brûlée, but I like crema catalana more. Whatever the truth, Crema Catalana is a beautiful, rich creamy dessert – perfect for any Spanish dinner party. It’s a new top pudding!
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Orange & Cinnamon Semolina Cake
Posted on February 21, 2009 | 1 CommentTweet It’s really not that often that I cook a cake, but for some reason I had to make one today. I settled on a classic greek semolina cake as it’s my favourite kind. I hadn’t really factored in just how the 38ºC temperature outside would affect my kitchen – without air conditioning. Consequently I could barely breathe and looked rather pink and flustered. That said, I must note that this cake was delicious! As I type this, I am eyeing up the last piece alone on its plate. I am not the only one however, so I will have to make a sneaky manoeuvre to make sure I get it. Wish me luck.
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Figs with Cinnamon Crumble, Pomegranate Molasses and Honey Yoghurt
Posted on January 24, 2009 | No CommentsTweet This is utterly delicious. I devised this after being given some figs and some pomegranates by Brendan as he asked to make something special. I was amazed just how successful it was. I’m pretty sure you’ll agree. The sharpness of the pomegranate and sweetness of the yoghurt together with the mellow cinnamon are a trio made in heaven. It’s one of the best desserts I’ve ever tasted! Brendan has insisted that this dish be called “Figs Jackson” in case it becomes the peach melba of the new millennium.
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Mango Fritters
Posted on October 14, 2008 | 4 CommentsTweet This is a bit of a retro classic. I love mango, but I always end up eating them raw before I figure how to use them. This is a really simple way to cook them. I just love the crispy outer shell with the sweet mango inside and it’s perfect with some ice cream! One thing to note, don’t pick a mango that’s too soft, as you’ll not be able to handle it enough to get the batter on. I always pick the slightly firmer ones as they tend to soften once they’re hot.
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Blueberry & Sultana Crumble
Posted on September 29, 2008 | No CommentsTweet Blueberries were going cheap at the supermarket, so naturally I bought a little packet on a whim – then thought “What the frig am I going to make with these?” It’s not an ingredient I use a lot so I was a bit stuck. After trawling through a few recipe books I discovered it’s an ingredient a lot of people avoid! So, with no inspiration to spark me off I decided upon the old fail safe, a crumble. The resulting dessert was absolutely delicious. Who knew the blueberry had it in him!!
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Chocolate & Almond Tart.
Posted on August 13, 2008 | No CommentsTweet The dessert! By this point we were pretty full. I knew this would tip us over the edge. But I also knew it was totally delicious. A real chocolate lovers treat. It’s luxurious, rich and incredibly fattening, but I simply don’t care. It’s too tasty to worry about.
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Orange Sorbet with Cointreau
Posted on August 9, 2008 | No CommentsTweet I had intended to serve this as a dessert, but changed my mind in favour of a chocolate tart. I used the sorbet as a palate cleanser course. It was a great fruity dish that really got the taste buds ready for the next installment of Stuffed Poussin with Asparagus Risotto.
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Turkish Rice Pudding
Posted on July 21, 2008 | No CommentsTweet I remember being force fed this as a child. I absolutely hated it! But times have a changed and the recipe I use is much tastier than the stodgy sliced slop I was made to eat. A beautiful Turkish recipe that leaves a warming cinnamon taste in the mouth.
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Lychee & Mango Pancakes
Posted on May 10, 2008 | 1 CommentTweet I’m not much of a sweet tooth, and I very rarely make a pudding. But I fancied something sweet today after a mouth blistering Thai curry I’d made. This was the perfect antidote. The Thai basil works a treat, bringing out a little sweetness all of its own. This will serve 4 people. I made my filling with some fresh rambutan (a South East Asian fruit) but tinned lychees will work just as well. Just make sure you rinse off as much of the syrup as you can or it’ll be too sweet.
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Chocolate Fondant Pudding
Posted on April 22, 2008 | 2 CommentsTweet • Share on Facebook • Add to Del.icio.us • Digg It! I’m not a massive chocolate demon. I do like it, but thankfully, it’s never been something I crave or gorge myself on. Once in a while, I eat a chocolate pudding that makes me grateful I don’t have this chocolate ‘gene’. This fondant pudding is totally sublime. This little cake delivers a dreamy warm choco fondant inside. It’s deliciously rich. I is also definitely a once in a while treat – too many of these and you’ll end up the size of Oprah. Incidentally, these are perfect dinner party puds. You can make them up to 12 hours in advance. Which will save you a nervous breakdown when your guests are hovering around your kitchen, getting on your nerves.
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Cannoli
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Cranberry, Apple & Walnut Muffins
Posted on July 10, 2007 | 1 CommentTweet I don’t know what’s gotten into me, maybe it’s the rain and the ‘cold’ weather but I’m baking more cakes than I’ve ever done. These little muffins were really rather delicious with a cup of coffee this afternoon. I’ll definitely be making them again. This will make 12 mini muffins or 6 massive ones.
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Spanish Churros & Hot Chocolate
Posted on July 7, 2007 | No CommentsTweet I saw a stupid woman cook this on TV tonight and she made a right dogs arse of it. Coming from someone who isn’t really a sweet tooth, it’s one of the only puddingy things that gets me excited. And to see some ridiculous TV chef butcher a relatively easy recipe demanded that I let anyone who happened to witness the said show to make the real things for themselves. Properly.
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Chocolate Chip Brownies
Posted on June 14, 2007 | No CommentsTweet Luckily I’m not the worlds biggest fan of chocolate and rarely eat it, however, I do get the urge once in a blue moon to splurge on some. Today was one such moment. In an even rarer move, I decided to bake some sweet treats. These little double hits of chocolate are gorgeous… but I can just feel the extra inch of flab appearing as I happily muched my way through 5 with a cup of tea.
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