Posts tagged ‘Other Sweets’

May 24

Coconut Pancakes With Caramel Sauce

When you look at a food magazine, the photo on the cover should invite you to open up the magazine, have a look, and then convince you to carry it to the checkout to purchase it. Most food magazines deliver this invite pretty well to me, especially if it has something sweet on the cover.

In this particular case, I was at the library browsing through the small selection of back issues of delicious. magazine. That’s when I saw it. A photo on the cover of November 2009′s issue that looked like a stack of Heaven with Heaven sauce and Heaven cream and a scattering of Heaven thrown on top. I clutched on to it immediately.

What was actually on the cover was a beautifully arranged stack of 3 coconut pancakes. In between the layers was a hearty creamy dollop of creme fraiche and sliced bananas. From the very top of the stack of pancakes, caramel sauce drizzled down and scattered about the stack was shredded coconut and a dusting of icing sugar.

Oh. My. God. The photo looked fantastic. And then, I made it for myself.

My stack looks sort of similar to the photo on the cover, but it doesn’t have the elegance that the cover photo did! But in the end, it didn’t matter to me one single bit what it looked like, because this is one of the most delicious stacks of pancakes I have ever eaten. Ever.

May 10

5 Comments

Treacle Scones

This was my fourth year as a mother for Mother’s Day. It’s been pretty amazing, the past four years. Mother’s Day hasn’t ever been a big celebration for us, maybe just a nicer meal than usual and a “Happy Mother’s Day”. This was the first year though that my four-year-old daughter was able to understand what Mother’s Day is, or well, sort of! She made a pretty sequined magnet and a collage at preschool for me for the special occasion.

I also got an Eco Cup because I mentioned earlier that I’d like to take a cup of coffee along with me on those cold, early mornings when I have to walk my daughter to preschool, but I didn’t have a nice travel cup.

And now I do. It looks almost just like a takeaway paper coffee cup, but it’s not. The cup is porcelain and the sleeve and lid are silicone. Apparently I can use it at coffee shops, if I request for the barista to fill it instead of a paper cup. Neat!

Apr 13

1 Comment

Teriyaki Beef Sushi And Green Tea Meringues

Wow, a whole seven days without a post, what am I coming to? I have been a little busy over the Easter holidays and while I haven’t quit baking, I have had less time to spend on the computer. Now that the holidays are over, I hope to resume some sort of normality. To make up for my lack of posting, I did a makeover on my “About” page by adding a lot more information about myself, so have a read over that if you’re curious.

To get back in the swing of things, I have a sort of Japanese-theme for this post. We’ll start off with teriyaki beef sushi. If you read my new “About” page, you will learn that sushi is my ultimate favorite food. I love sushi with raw salmon the best, but this recipe that I found in the March 2010 issue of Australia’s Recipes + is pretty good too.

I’m really sorry for the poor quality of the photo. The sun had already set and lighting was dim in the house. I keep saying it’s time to make my own lightbox, but haven’t gotten around to that yet.

Mar 26

7 Comments

Faux Hot Cross Buns

The closest I’ve ever came to a hot cross bun while growing up was reciting the nursery rhyme, “Hot cross buns, hot cross buns, one a penny, two a penny, hot cross buns”. I never actually knew what a hot cross bun was. I grew up in a cornfield in Indiana, after all, so I didn’t know very much of the world!

Later on, I came to realize that a hot cross bun is a sweet, golden bun speckled with raisins and marked with a cross on top, and sold at Easter time. The cross is supposed to symbolize the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Or at least that’s what Wikipedia tells me about hot cross buns.

Whatever the original meaning of hot cross buns, it is obvious that they have evolved over the years. Hot cross buns can now be found studded with chocolate chips instead of dried fruits, and I recently even tasted a mocha-flavored hot cross bun.

Feb 7

17 Comments

Nutella Cream Cheese Fruit Dip

As you may know, February 5 was World Nutella Day. I submitted my entry, a fried Nutella and banana sandwich with cinnamon sugar crust, but a comment on that entry inspired me to make a Nutella fruit dip. It’s basically a variation of this peanut butter dip, which I have made before and absolutely loved. I replaced the peanut butter with Nutella, omitted the brown sugar and added a pinch of salt instead.

It tastes amazing! We used apples to dip into it, but it would taste great with bananas and strawberries as well.

This is my bonus World Nutella Day recipe for all you Nutella-lovers!

Nutella Cream Cheese Fruit Dip
Adapted from In Mama’s Kitchen
Print this recipe via Tasty Kitchen
Makes approx. 1/2 cup

Ingredients
3 tablespoons Nutella
3 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
pinch of salt
1/4 cup milk

Method
Thoroughly mix Nutella, cream cheese and salt until no streaks of cream cheese remain. Mixture may be a little grainy-looking. Slowly add milk a bit at a time and stir until milk is thoroughly mixed in. You should end up with a nice smooth, creamy dip for your fruit. Store in refrigerator. To soften up the dip after removing from the refrigerator, just stick it in the microwave for about 10-15 seconds.

Nov 8

19 Comments

Pumpkin Walnut Cheesecake

Cheesecakes are not one of my favorite dessert foods. It’s the cream cheese that I don’t like. I like cream cheese when it’s sweetened, like in frosting, or when mixed into muffins, but I don’t like it on its own or when the flavor of the cream cheese is too prominent.

This month’s Taste Of Home magazine featured quite a few cheesecake recipes and they all looked amazing to me. It made me wish that I liked cheesecakes! I decided to try one of the recipes; maybe my tastes had changed since I last had cheesecake. I chose the pumpkin cheesecake, because I love pumpkin.

Now, I’ve never made a cheesecake before, so I was entering new territory! The process of putting it together was extremely easy. I was looking forward to having a cheesecake that was as beautiful and yummy-looking as was in the picture in the magazine.

But, it ended up being not as pretty…

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Oct 30

2 Comments

Quick, Easy Cinnamon Rolls

One of my all-time favorite breakfast foods is the cinnamon roll. Paired with a steaming cup of coffee or hot cocoa, it is perfect for when you’re feeling all warm and cozy on a chilly morning.

Unfortunately, I’ve noticed a lot of people are scared, or reluctant, to bake cinnamon rolls from scratch because of the yeast, the waiting, the rolling, etc. That’s fine though, because Cinnabon sells a great cinnamon roll, and you can even bake up a Pillsbury cinnamon roll from a tube in just 10 minutes. But sometimes maybe you find yourself longing for a homemade cinnamon roll, and for those times, I recommend you print out the recipe for these super easy no-yeast cinnamon rolls right now!

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See, I’m scared of baking with yeast too! But I promise myself that I will one day face my fears about yeast. That day is not today, however. When I saw this recipe for no-yeast cinnamon rolls at Ezra Pound Cake I was so relieved to see that I really could make cinnamon rolls without yeast. Read more

Oct 9

15 Comments

Easy As Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream

In Parke County, Indiana there is an annual event known as the Covered Bridge Festival that runs for a week in early October (it actually starts today, too bad it is rainy and dreary!).

Parke County is famous for its 32 covered bridges, and has festivals throughout the entire county each year to celebrate their bridges. Throughout the county you’ll find some great seasonal foods and classic favorite foods such as baked potatoes, onion blossoms, barbecue chicken, sausages. The smell of the air during the festival just screams FOOD at you! Read more

Sep 26

10 Comments

Matcha; Not Only For Lattes

If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you’ll know that I’m really keen on matcha. My love for green tea started in 1999 when I visited Australia to see my then-boyfriend (now husband!). He took me to a lovely Japanese restaurant where he convinced me to try a bowl of green tea ice cream. It tasted beautiful and from then, I was hooked!

In the past, I’ve made my own green tea ice cream, hot cocoa with matcha whipped cream, and various matcha cupcakes (one of which was the winner of December 2008′s Iron Cupcake: Earth challenge). Just have a look at all my matcha recipes!

When I was contacted by Matcha Source and asked if I’d like to sample their matcha, there was no way I’d refuse! I haven’t placed an order from Matcha Source before, but they totally won me over with the package they sent me.

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I had to photograph the box. It’s very pretty! But of course, what is most exciting is what is inside the box…

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I received a 10g sample of high quality bright green matcha powder, a Bodum milk frother, various matcha recipes, a discount on my first order, and a lovely handwritten and personalized card from Alissa; she even congratulated me on the birth of my baby! It was really nice that the package was so personalized, this definitely made my day!

That very day, I made a warm, frothy matcha latte to test out their matcha. There really is nothing like the smell and appearance of fresh, bright green matcha; I love opening new packages of matcha.

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The recipe for this is so simple, you could make your own with your eyes closed.

Hot Matcha Green Tea Latte
from Matcha Source

The trick to this classic style beverage is to make the tea first, then add the hot milk and foam.

Sift 1 tsp Gotcha Matcha into a cup.

Melt matcha by adding 2 oz hot water and stirring until matcha becomes a smooth paste.

Pour 6 oz steamed milk into your favorite matcha bowl or teacup.

Add matcha tea to the milk.

Scoop foamy milk on top.

Sprinkle with matcha dust or cocoa powder.

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And enjoy!

Matcha not only tastes great, but has various health benefits as well. It is rich in antioxidants, naturally enhances your mood, promotes weight loss and is rich is nutrients, fiber and chlorophyll. Since matcha is sugar-free, it’s a great choice for diabetics and those who are interested in reducing their sugar intake.

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So it’s great for afternoon tea. Instead of coffee, try a hot matcha latte instead!

But wait, you’ll need a sweet snack to go with that matcha latte. I’ve seen a few different ways to make matcha truffles, but I haven’t yet seen a matcha cake truffle. Surely you’ve seen the cake truffles, sometimes known as cake balls, around the internet; Bakerella did a great job in making them famous! I decided to do the same thing, but use matcha powder in the cake and frosting.

caketruffles

The process of making these is exactly the same as you’ll find on Bakerella’s website. I made my own vanilla cake and cream cheese frosting, but you can use a box cake mix and frosting if you wish; just sift about one tablespoon matcha to a vanilla cake mix, and optionally, sift 1-2 teaspoons matcha to vanilla or cream cheese frosting for a super matcha taste. The amount of matcha you add to your cake and frosting is totally up to you – add more or less depending on your taste.

Just for reference, I used Billy’s vanilla vanilla cupcakes recipe, which is my favorite vanilla cupcake recipe (I sifted about one tablespoon – a little less – matcha into the dry ingredients), and Chokylit’s green tea cream cheese frosting recipe. I added a bit of shortening to the chocolate as it was melting to make it smoother and easier to work with – the general rule is to add a level 1/2 teaspoon per one ounce of chocolate, or one tablespoon per six ounces of chocolate and melt them together.

I have written up the full recipe at the end of this post to make the matcha cake truffles using a box cake mix and a tub of frosting.

The truffles have an immense matcha taste, with just a hint of dark chocolate.

Keep the finished cake truffles stored in the refrigerator, otherwise they melt and turn gooey really quickly! The truffles taste best after allowing them to completely set in the refrigerator; I thought they tasted better the next day.

In conclusion, if you haven’t yet tried matcha, give it a go! Matcha Source is a great place to start for information on matcha and many different recipes to test out. Just have a read over their Matcha Buyer’s Guide to find out which matcha is right for you.

Matcha Cake Truffles
makes 45-50

Ingredients
1 box white cake mix (plus ingredients called for on box)
1 16 oz. tub cream cheese frosting
2 tablespoons matcha powder, divided (see note)
1 12 oz. package dark chocolate chips
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening

Directions
Sift 1 tablespoon matcha powder into dry ingredients of cake mix, then prepare and bake the cake as directed on the box.

After cake has completely cooled, crumble into a large bowl by using your fingers or a food processor.

Sift 1 tablespoon matcha powder into frosting and stir thoroughly – you can do this in a separate bowl if you prefer, as it might be too difficult to stir in the tub! Pour frosting into crumbled cake and mix thoroughly.

Roll mixture into quarter-sized balls and lay on a cookie sheet. If the mixture is too soft, place into the refrigerator to firm up (30-60 minutes) before rolling into balls. Tip – keep your hands cold and slightly wet to keep the cake mixture from sticking to your hands.

Refrigerate the cake balls for several hours, or place them in the freezer to make them firm up faster. You’ll need them to be very firm to dip into the chocolate.

Melt chocolate chips with 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening over a double boiler, stirring often.

Dip each ball into the melted chocolate to completely coat; using a fork, remove the balls and place on a cookie sheet that is covered with wax paper. Place in refrigerator for several hours, or until chocolate is completely set.

Note: You can use as much or as little matcha powder as you like, however I find that you do need quite a bit for the matcha taste to be prominent.

Sep 13

5 Comments

English Toffee

I’m not too fond of hard candy, but I’ve been determined to make my own toffee for a few months now. I kept putting it off because, like a lot of others, I was scared of using the candy thermometer! In my search for an easy toffee recipe, I came across Paula Deen’s, which looked super easy.

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So I gave it a go and was surprised at how easy it actually was. The only part of the recipe that wasn’t entirely clear was adding the vanilla and salt – I found that I needed to really stir the vanilla in there to get it evenly mixed and for it turn that beautiful caramelly-toffee color.

After spreading the toffee in the cookie sheet and spreading out the chocolate with an offset spatula, I topped about 1/4 of the toffee with M&M’s, for the kids, another 1/4 with chopped pecans, and the rest I left plain. After it was completely cool (I ended up putting it in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes!) and the chocolate was hardened, I chopped it into pieces.

Obviously I did not strictly follow Paula Deen’s recipe – she had mixed the pecans into the actual toffee and left the top of the chocolate plain.

The toffee tasted fantastic and was absolutely perfect! I’d highly recommend this super easy recipe for toffee and don’t be scared of using a candy thermometer! :)

Jul 31

2 Comments

Stained Glass Jello

Jello is a very strange food, in my opinion. Its obscenely bright color, its jiggly wiggly consistency and the fact that it’s made from animal fat should put anyone off eating it! However, kids (and adults) have loved Jello for years. My grandmother used to serve it to the kids in our family for dessert – usually strawberry Jello with whipped cream.

But out of all the years I’ve seen Jello in its many forms and molds, I have never seen a creation such as stained glass Jello from The Food Librarian. When I originally saw a photo of the stained glass Jello on either TasteSpotting or FoodGawker, I can’t remember which now, it immediately got placed on my to-do list.

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It looks awesome! It tastes good too, and both of my children could not get enough of it. It was my 2-year-old son’s first experience with Jello and he was totally fascinated with its jiggliness. For me, the hardest part I had getting around was the sweetened condensed milk in this; it just seems so weird to add gelatin to it!

The stained glass Jello is great project to do with kids, so on the next rainy day, I’d highly suggest making this!

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On a totally separate note, I apologize to those of you who may have tried to access The Sweetest Kitchen in the past few days and have been getting errors or warning messages. Something went wrong behind-the-scenes (through no fault of my own) and I had been trying to contact support and not getting much help. Everything should be fixed now, hopefully!