Sweet Desserts

Strawberry Jelly

2005-11-16T09:20:00.000-08:00

Strawberry Jelly

One of classic kiddies’ all time favorite. I always have some jelly in the fridge when I was a kid. I buy packs of “jelly ace” and store in fridge. I can easily be bribed with a pack of jelly. Those were the days when things are not so complicated! I didn’t realize that it is that easy to make! Now, I can have loads of flavors! I should have known this before eyyh? I guess I wasn’t that smart and clever yet!

Ingredients:
1 pack (24 g) unflavored gulaman powder
2 teaspoons strawberry flavoring
½ teaspoon red coloring
1 liter water
2 cups sugar

Procedure:

In a casserole, put 1 liter of water (not warm or hot), add sugar, flavoring and coloring. Stir until sugar is completely dissolved. Gradually sprinkle 1 pack of gulaman powder while stirring constantly until gulaman has completely dissolved. Stand for 5 to 10 minutes. Heat the mixture and stir constantly until it thickens and comes to a near boil. Remove from heat and pour into molding container.

Cookies and Cream with Orange wedges

2005-11-14T04:57:00.000-08:00

Cookies and cream with orange

Ingredients:

1 pack Chocolate biscuits
100 g. Softened butter
2 teaspoons whiskey
2 cups Whipped cream
1/2 cup Icing sugar

Preparation:
Pound some chocolate biscuits using a mortar and pestle until roughly fine and mix thoroughly with
softened butter. Add 3 Tablespoons of the mixture into a circular cookie cutter and press down creating a base about 1/2 inch thick. Add 1 tablespoon of whiskey to the base. Place each base in a saucer and refrigerate for about 30 minutes. Mix whipped cream with icing sugar and place on top of the base
using the same mold. Add segments of orange just before serving.

Fruit Salad

2005-11-08T23:25:00.000-08:00

fruitsalad

What could be healthier than fruit salad? So simple and colorful. Slice fruits into chunks and sprinkle juice of half of a lemon and orange juice. No sugar and cream added, just fresh fruits! Here, got water melon, banana, apple, pear, wedges of orange and grapefruit and mango.

Grapefruit and Orange

2005-11-01T06:50:00.000-08:00

grapefruit and orange

I love how it looks... simply wedges of orange and grapefruit and a teaspon of syryp at the center. Makes healthy citrus dessert!

Stewed Pear

2005-10-27T11:53:00.000-07:00

Stewed Pear

The original recipe from a Dutch cookbook requires blackcurrant liqueur which, honestly I don’t know, I like gin, so I put gin instead. Whisky would have been better I think coz its quite sharper taste than gin but I don’t have. I used corn flour instead of potato flour as suggested in the recipe. I love the vibrant color of this dessert!! Its my first time doing this, but its good… hmmm, I ‘m gonna keep this one! Or maybe even try with other fruit like apple, which absorbs flavor a lot.

Ingredients :

4 pears
4 cloves
3 cinnamon sticks
5 Tablespoons sugar
200 ml red wine
50 ml gin
1 tablespoon corn flour
Lemon zest

Preparation:

Peel the pears and leave them whole. In a medium size saucepan, mix red wine, sugar, cinnamon sticks and lemon zest. Add the pears into the mixture then add enough water just to cover the pears. Bring to boil and leave to simmer, covered for 2 ½ hours until tender.

To serve, lift the pears carefully out of the pan. Pass the remaining liquid through a fine sift to get rid of sediments. Mix 1 tablespoon of corn flour with the pear juice and bring to boil stirring all the while with a wisk until the wine sauce thickens. Pour this over the stewed pears and serve individually hot or cold.

Choco Banana Crepe

2005-10-25T01:25:00.000-07:00

Choco Banana Crepe

Crepe
Banana
Unsweetened Chocolate bars

Procedure:

Beat eggs until slightly fluffy, add milk and flour alternatively and mix thoroughly until it forms a thin
batter.

In a hot pan, spread the oil, tilt the sides of the pan. Wipe off excess oil with a kitchen paper. Add 1 ladle of the batter and quickly spread on the pan leave for 1 minute until bubbles can no longer be seen on the batter, cook the other side by inverting the crepe carefully. Remove from pan and fold into quarters forming a cone shape.

Melt chocolate in a bowl over a simmering water. Add sliced banana and toss with the melted chocolate. Place in between and on top of the crepe and serve.

Chocolate Crumble with Whipped Cream

2005-10-25T00:26:00.000-07:00

Chocolate Crumble with whipped cream

Ingredients:

Stale chocolate cake
2 tsp. gin.
Icing sugar
Whipped cream

Preparation:
Slice stale chocolate cake finely until it assembles fine crumbs.. In a circular cookie cutter, assemble the base by pressing the fine crumbs into it; making sure its quite compact. Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of gin each base to add a sharper flavor. Add icing sugar to whipped cream and add on top. Remove the mold. Sprinkle some chocolate cake decors.

Apples Under the Blanket

2005-10-25T00:09:00.000-07:00

Apples under a blanket

Chocolate Cake

2005-10-20T06:29:00.000-07:00

Chocolate Cake

2 cups cake flour (sifted)
1 ½ cups cocoa powder (sifted)
100 g. butter
1 cup sugar (sifted)
1 cup water
2 T. coffee
3 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda

Chocolate icing
2 bars dark unsweetened chocolate
3 T. butter

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees C. Prepare the baking pan. Combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda. Dissolve coffee in water and set aside. In a separate mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until well blended, add eggs one by one while continue beating, and add the flour mixture to the egg mixture, add the coffee mixture. Continue beating until smooth. Pour the mixture into the pan and bake for 20 to 30 minutes. Let cool in a cooling rack and prepare the icing.

To prepare chocolate icing:

In a deep saucepan, boil 2-3 cups water. Cut the bars into smaller cubes. In heatproof mixing bowl or saucepan put the butter and chopped chocolate and place the saucepan over the boiling water. The chocolate must melt gently with the heat of the steam coming from the boiling water underneath. This is to avoid direct heat to the chocolate coz it easily burns. When the butter and chocolate has melted, mix thoroughly until well combined.

When the cake has completely cooled, invert the cake and divide into two layers. Cover the first layer with the icing and place the other layer. Spread the remaining icing on the top layer.

I lost the recipe I used to follow for chocolate cake, and all of a sudden I am craving to have a bite of something chocolaty with dark coffe... Well, I made one, I wasnt sure if the proportion would work, but thanks God it did! Luckily I took some note, he he..This is one of my favorites!!! With dark coffee please???

Fruity Jelly

2005-10-11T08:49:00.000-07:00

Fruity Jelly

Ingredients:

2 pcs. Kiwi
2 pcs. Banana
2 pcs. Orange
8 pcs. Strawberry
1 pack unflavored sea jelly powder (gulaman)
3 cups water
½ cup sugar

Procedure:

Prepare a mold, preferably rectangular container, line with plastic cling wrap allowing 4 inches allowance outside the mold. Lay the allowance out of the container draping at the edges. Set aside.

Slice the fruits thinly and set aside.

Mix sea jelly powder with water, stir until completely dissolved, add sugar and bring to boil, continue stirring until it becomes slightly thick. Pour the jelly mixture into the mold. With a fork, quickly arrange the fruits into the mold while the jelly mixture is still hot. Be sure to stop arranging the fruits when the jelly starts to set.

Chill for at least 1 hour. Carefully take the jelly out by inverting the mold into a plate. Take out the lined plastic. Cut in slices and serve.

Tip:
Make sure you use fresh fruits. One more tip, soak banana with the orange juice or lemon to avoid discoloration.

Reduced the water to ensure a solid jelly. In the packet of the jelly, it says 1 pack is good for 6 cups of water. Reducing the amount of water ensures the jelly to hold the fruits together.

Chocolate 'n Crepe

2005-10-11T01:21:00.000-07:00

Chocolate ‘n Crepe

Ingredients:

1 cup milk
¼ cup flour
2 eggs
Scoops of chocolate ice cream
1 T. oil

Procedure:

Beat eggs until slightly fluffy, add milk and flour alternatively while mixing thoroughly until it forms a thin batter.

In a hot pan, spread the oil till the sides of the pan and swirl around. Wipe off excess oil with a kitchen paper. Add 1 ladle of the batter and quickly spread on the pan; leave for 1 minute until bubbles can no longer be seen on the batter, cook the other side by inverting the crepe carefully. Remove from pan and fold into quarters forming like a cone. Put a scoop of chocolate ice cream in between the folds and serve immediately.

Tip:

The crepes can be prepared in advance but be sure to separate them. To make separation easy, place a wax paper on top of each crepe, stacking them alternately with paper.

Fruity Cake

2005-02-19T09:15:00.000-08:00

Fruity Cake

I would have been proud if I made this but nope, got no time by then. This was served during my farewell party way back in Abu Dhabi... Sadiq was so kind to run to Abu Dhabi Mall to grab one of their cakes.. It is a sponge cake actually, decorated with fruits; kiwi,cherry, strawberry and almond chips at the sides.. Looks so vibrant. I just made the ribbon for the cake knife :-) he he

2005-02-19T09:11:00.000-08:00

Macaroni Salad

Pineapple Delight

2005-02-17T06:54:00.000-08:00

Pineapple Delight

I skip meat for lunch coz this was on my mind! I had this kind of dessert once we had dinner out and I thought of making one at home.. so here it is! What could be easier than this huh? Slice of pineapple, drizzle some syrup on top, 2 scoops of ice cream and fried spaghetti. Those long sticks you can see are fried spaghetti!!! They are incredibly crispy! Luckily I got a frame that looks just like it as accent. Again.. “for the sake of ArT” – This is gonna ba a common phrase you can see frequently in my blog, I think (winks).

Passion Fruit Ice Cream

2005-02-17T01:18:00.000-08:00

Passion Fruit Ice Cream

Ohhhh… another ice cream?? Yez coz the summer breeze is quite hot! The passion fruit in the garden had been bearing fruits since January, but don’t know really what else to prepare other than eating it raw or mixing it with fruit juice which we are having everyday. Figured out that I could incorporate the flavor with ice cream but was hesitant with the acidity it has might break the custard mixture. I risked making one yesterday, fortunately it is fine! This is not my favorite nor hubby’s but it could be a good alternative. Just play with presentation! I didn’t use a goblet this time but the shell of the passion fruit itself! I like the handle.. toothpick with raisins! Tsk.. tsk… again.. “for the sake of aRt”

Use the basic ice cream recipe, add passion fruit while making the custard during the constant stirring stage when you are waiting for the mixture to thicken in low fire, but pass through a fine sift when custard is done. Just to get rid of the seeds, they might destroy the ice cream maker and besides it is tough to eat. But when eaten raw, it’s okay for me though.

Hearty Lemon Cream Dessert

2005-02-12T02:20:00.000-08:00

Hearty Lemon Cream Dessert

Here is my Valentine treat! Easy to make!

Ingredients:

3 eggs
½ Cup Sugar
1 Can (290 g) Cream
Lemon zest
1 pack of gelatin
¼ Cup water

How to:

Heat cream until just about to boil, remove from heat. While heating the cream, beat eggs and sugar until fluffy. Add the warm cream to the egg mixture slowly, stirring constantly and add lemon zest. Put back to the pan and continue heating with low fire, stirring constantly until thick consistency is reached but do not boil. Let set for 2 minutes to lower temperature then finally add 1 pack of gelatin dissolved in ¼ cup of water. Pass the mixture through a sift to get rid of bubbles and small lumps, if there is any, and let set in a molder. Put into the freezer for 1 hour and continue chilling in the fridge until ready to serve. Garnish with red sauce to have a valentine touch.

The red sauce I used is crystallized cherry which I happen to have a spare. I didn’t plan to make this but I just feel like doing something for valentine. I searched for anything red I could grab in the fridge and found this jelly like candy, a bit harder than jelly actually coz it’s caramelized with sugar. Blitz it in the blender to turn into liquid, add water of course. Its really up to you whatever you have.. If you have strawberry…raspberry or anything of some sort and fresh would be a lot better.

Tips:

To achieve with the same presentation as mine, use 6 inch square pan and limit the mixture to ½ inch thick. Freeze for 1 hour. Use heart shaped cookie cutter to cut through the settled mixture.

When grating the lemon to get the zest, make sure you are not getting the white flesh of the lemon. This tastes bitter!

In making the custard, don’t give up easily until thicker consistency is reached. Test by checking at the back of the spoon, when you can draw a line in it and doesn’t go easily, it is done. Got to careful with this coz it could be lumpy when boiled! One more thing, when adding the cream to the egg mixture, add the cream slowly in thin stream and stir constantly. Do not pour the cream or milk in one go. The same procedure applies for all custard recipes.

2005-02-11T05:52:00.000-08:00

Glazed Banana

Xmas Cake

2005-02-06T08:30:00.000-08:00

Xmas Cake

Our Christmas cake last Christmas.. the story :-)

I've been wondering what could I have for a unique christmas piece at home... My husband doesnt feel like having a christmas tree.. so I wandered around the junkies at the backyard what could I get... I saw a circular piece of wood which looks perfect for a cakestand.. actually I saw it before and just kicked it out and watched it rolled to a corner... what I did... I put 4 equal size of wood that would serve as a stand and there goes my cake stand! Painted it white and decorated with wired green leaves, the same material for Christmas Tree, twirled some gold and red ribbons. The colorful base layer are macaroons which I wrapped with colored plastic wrappers and formed it into something cheerful. Baked a layer of chiffon cake for the top layer and decorated it with icing, put Sta. Claus beside a small tree, add some red candies and mallows and stuffed the the base with christmas balls and bells! It isn’t just a christmas piece but with edible decors with two kinds of dessert. The cake and macaroons. Guests just love to munch the macaroons while sitting & chatting after dinner. This was the centerpiece of the center table where we had buffet with the guests and everybody loves it!!! They've been wondering which shop I bought!! --- secret --- :-) Unique.. isnt it?? You don’t really need to have Christmas Tree always on Christmas…. Here is a good alternative!

Classic Crepe

2005-02-06T02:32:00.000-08:00

classic crepe

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 Cup flour
1 Tbsp. Sugar
1 Tbsp. Melted Butter
1 tsp. salt

How to:

Whisk eggs until frothy; add milk, flour, sugar, salt and melted butter. Continue beating until you will reach a very very thin consistency of the batter. Heat a nonstick medium sized pan with low-medium fire. Oil spray the pan or you make use a kitchen towel wet with oil to wipe the pan to avoid excess oil. Put 2-3 tablespoon into the pan; tilt the pan to form a very thin circular shape of the batter. Start removing from the edges as it turns slightly brown and turn it over slowly not to deform the shape. Use a wax paper to alternate each crepe to easily separate each. Spread Jelly or syrup on each crepe, fold into quarts and serve.

Mint Ice Cream

2005-02-03T05:48:00.000-08:00

Mint Ice Cream

This is so refreshing ice cream! The mint flavor adds freshness as it melts in your mouth! I was wondering what alternative flavor of ice ice cream. I usually make chocolate, strawberry or other fruity flavors but with the heat of summer in Luanda, ice cream is just a perfect merienda! I played with other flavors I got, I had a remaining mint flavoring so I tried.. I never thought it would work coz, I haven’t seen such flavor in the market… The good thing about making your own ice cream is that you can control the sweetness by reducing the amount of sugar!

Just use the same recipe of the strawberry I had posted and replace the flavor, but here it is anyway.

Ingredients :

2 eggs
250 ml full cream milk
100 g sugar
450 g whipping cream
2 tsp. mint essence
1/2 tsp. green food coloring

Procedure :

Warm milk in a small pan whilst whisking the eggs and sugar in a separate bowl. Slowly pour the warm milk into the egg and sugar mixture, stirring constantly. Pour the mixture back into the pan stirring constantly, until it begins to thicken slightly but do not let it boil. Allow it to cool down to room temperature, mix in the cream and strawberry essence and chill for 30 minutes. Pour the mixture in an icecream maker. Alternatively, if you dont have an icecream maker, freeze the mixture and stir occationally just before it would turn into solid to avoid crystalized icecream.

Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream

2005-01-27T06:57:00.000-08:00

Homemade Strawberry Icecream

Ingredients :

2 eggs
250 ml full cream milk
100 g sugar
450 g whipping cream
2 tsp. strawberry essence
1/2 tsp. red food coloring

Procedure :

Warm milk in a small pan whilst whisking the eggs and sugar in a separate bowl. Slowly pour the warm milk into the egg and sugar mixture, stirring constantly. Pour this all back into the pan and heat the mixture. stirring constantly, until it begins to thicken slightly but do not let it boil. Allow it to cool down to room temperature, mix in the cream and strawberry essence and chill for 30 minutes. Pour the mixture in an icecream maker. Alternatively, if you dont have an icecream maker, freeze the mixture and stir occationally just before it would turn into solid to avoid crystalized icecream. Enjoy!!!

2005-01-27T04:20:00.000-08:00

pineaple biscuits

Floating Island

2005-01-26T03:35:00.000-08:00

floating island

Ingredients:

Eggwhite balls (2 egg white)
syrup
custard :

Ingredients for custard:
1 eggs
125 ml milk
50 g. sugar
225 g. cream

Procedure for custard:

Bring to boil milk and cream. Beat eggs until fluffy. Slowly add the milk mixture into the eggs,stirring constantly. Pour the mixture back to the pan and heat the mixture stirring constantly until thick but do not let it boil. Chill the mixture for 30 mins. This should be made ahead and when ready, proceed to make the eggwhite balls.

How to make eggwhite balls

Beat eggwhites until stiff. Add salt. Continue beating for 1 minute. Bring to boil plenty of water in a deep saucepan. With the stiffly beaten eggwhite, form balls using two spoons (deep spoon is better). Scoop a spoon of eggwhite forming it round and smoothen it with the other spoon. This would look like snowball. Place it gently into the boiling water leaving it for few seconds and turn the ball over to other side. Keep it round as possible as you can. Do this with a laddle. Take it out of the water and let rest into a clean cloth.

Pour the milk mixture into a glass and put the balls in it. Add syrup on top. Serve.

To make syrup, caramelize sugar and add lemon to flavor. Do this by heating sugar & lemon juice in a pan (without water), bring to boil until sugar turns slightly brown. Pour immediately to the white balls before it gets hard.

I first tasted in Pizza Hut – Paris and hubby taught me how to do it. It’s just irresistible!!