Pumpkin mini-cakes from Perigord

For some reason, my books with old-and-trusted without pictures recipes have often been my favorite. “Recettes paysannes du Perigord” (Editions du Curieux) is one of them. This book is full of recipes by locals, inns or farms owners, cooks or bakers amateurs. The recipes are so short, it’s just a dream for a lazy cook but…with time to spare. Some of the cook times are from back-in-the-days with simmering of “rotis” in duck fat for literally ever!

This recipe will however take you only 5 minutes to stir together, 20 minutes to bake and 1 minute to eat (especially when still warm from the oven!).

INGREDIENTS FOR 8 mini-cakes

Adapted from “Recettes paysannes du Perigord”, recipe by Simone Salien, from the Farm-Inn “Jolibois”

– 250g of canned pumpkin
– 2 TBS milk
– 50g coconut butter
– 85g white flour
– 15g brown rice flour
– 30g sugar
– 1tsp vanilla extract
– 2 eggs

_______________

INSTRUCTIONS

1) In a bowl, mixed all the ingredients together except the pumpkin (warm up the coconut butter a little bit if still solid)
2) Add the pumpkin.
3) Pour the batter in muffin molds
4) Put your muffin sheet in your pre-heated oven (380F) for 20 minutes.

Enjoy / Bonne dégustation!

No-flour Oatmeal & Dark-chocolate cookies

A first try that has turned into a staple, inspired by a recipe in Living by Martha Steward and her “Pecan, oat and dark-chocolate-chunk cookies” found on Anderson Island.

INGREDIENTS FOR 10 cookies

– 3/4 cup of almond meal
– 1 cup of shredded coconut flakes (I buy the flakes and shred them in my food processor to keep the moisture)
– 1 cup oat meal
– 1/4 cup of canola oil
– 1/2 cup of dark-chocolate chunks
– 1 tsp warm honey
– 1 tsp baking powder
– 1 tsp cornstarch/ potato starch
– 1 egg white
– 1 tsp vanilla extract

_______________

INSTRUCTIONS

1) In a bowl, mix the oat, cornstarch and baking powder.

2) Add the warm (liquid) honey and the oil. Mix (use your hands, no food processor here!)

3) Add the white egg and mix.

4) Add the chocolate chunk and mix.

5) Use your ice cream spoon and make 10 cookies. They might crumble down a little bit, but that do not change their taste.

6) Put your cookies sheet in your pre-heated oven (350F) for 15 minutes.

Enjoy / Bonne dégustation!

Chocolate Cake

Birthday chocolate cake for kiddos and grown-ups.

 

INGREDIENTS

• 200 g chocolate 72%
• 1 TBS unsweetened chocolate powder
• 4 eggs
• 110 g butter/ or 60 g
• 20 g sugar
• 100 g flour / or 80 g
• 2 tsp baking powder

____________________

DIRECTIONS

1) In your mixer, mix the eggs with the sugar until it goes white. Then add the flour, Mix. Finally add the baking powder, mix.

2) Melt the butter and the chocolate on low heat.

3) Add the butter/chocolate to the mixture.

4) In the oven at 350F for 25 min (15 min for a more lava-cake texture).

 

Enjoy / Bonne dégustation!

---

---

© Copyright Content and Pictures ZistAndThat 2016

Coconut banana muffins

My home-made go-to recipe when it comes to muffins. Simply healthy and easy.

 

INGREDIENTS FOR 8 MUFFINS

• ½ cup of freshly shredded coconut (I use coconut flakes that I shred)
• ½ cup almond ground
• ½ cup of brown rice flour (or any kind of flour)
• 2 ripped bananas
• 2 egg whites
• 3 TBS of almond or soy milk (or any kind of milk)
• ½ tsp almond extract
• 1tsp baking powder
• 1TBS flax seeds (optional)

____________________

DIRECTIONS

1) In your mixer, mix the white eggs with the flax seeds.

2) Add the bananas cut in pieces until creamy.

3) Add all the other ingredients.

4) Put in your muffin mold. In the oven at 370F for 15 to 20 min.

 

Enjoy / Bonne dégustation!

---

---

© Copyright Content and Pictures ZistAndThat 2016

Pineapple “Flan”

If the perfect cake existed, it would probably be this pineapple custard cake (“flan”): easy, delicious with a (undeserved) “wahooo” effect.

 

INGREDIENTS FOR A CAKE

– 3 slices of pineapple (canned)
– 1 1/2 to 2 can of sliced pineapples (can of 570g)
– 6 eggs
– 1 TBS of white flour
– 1 TBS of lemon juice

For the liquid caramel :
– Recipe here. Pour as much as you like.

____________________

DIRECTIONS

1)In a cake mold, lay down the 3 slices of pineapple and pour the liquid caramel over.

2) In your mixer, grind the sliced pineapples.

3) Simmer the pineapple for about 10 minutes (lid on top).

4) Whisk the eggs.

5) Mix the flour with the lemon juice. Add it to the eggs. Whisk.

6) Gently pour the pineapples (whisk vigorously to prevent the eggs from cooking or wait for the pineapple to cool down).

7) Pour the mixture into the cake mold.

8) Pour the cream onto the crust and add the plums sliced in half.

9) Bake in the oven at 410 degrees F for 45 minutes in a double boiler (heat the water first in microwave so you don’t have to turn up your oven on 460).

10) Let cool down and keep in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Enjoy / Bonne dégustation!

---

---

© Copyright Content and Pictures ZistAndThat 2016

Simple (Saucepan) Semolina Cake

Semolina cake: the life-saver recipe every mom and grandma loves to see their family indulge in. It’s one-whisk easy, comfortingly creamy and sweet and juicy as the raisins can be.

Some recipes will call for some oven time but this one is saucepan ready and will not take more than 10 minutes.

 

INGREDIENTS FOR 4 RAMEKINS

– 2 cups milk
– 2.60 oz semolina
– 1/2 tsp honey
– 1/2 TBS raisins
– 1 tsp vanilla extract
– 1/2 tsp orange blossom extract (optional)

_______________

INSTRUCTIONS

1) In a bowl, bring the milk, honey, vanilla and orange blossom to a boil before turning the heat to medium.

2) Add the semolina to the milk and whisk until it thicken. Whisk for about 5 minutes.

3) Pour in ramekins. Eat on the spot or keep it in the fridge for 1 hour.

Enjoy / Bonne dégustation!

Pink Cake with “Biscuits roses de Reims”

Ms “Gateau de Reims”, with its pink color and marzipan taste, is a favorite at our desserts table…as long as you can put up with her  snobby preference. She loves partaking a polite but witty discussion the Count of Champagne. However, even by herself, she will still be the wonderful guest you wish for.

This cake’s main ingredients is the famous biscuits roses de Reims, whose original recipe dated back to the 17th century in Reims. In the US, you can find them on Amazon.com.

INGREDIENTS FOR A CAKE (12 people)

– 220 g of biscuits roses de Reims
– 120 g of almond meal
– 4 tsp of butter
– 4 egg yolks
– 3/4 cup of milk
– 1/2 tsp of apple liquor or rum

____________________

DIRECTIONS

1) Beat the yolks and liquor together.

2) Warm the milk and slowly pour it over the yokes while whisking them vigorously. Put the mixture back in the saucepan. At medium heat, keep whisking the mixture to thicken it.

3) Warm the butter and mix it together with the almond and biscuits crushed in powder.

4) Mix everything together and pour in the mold. The mixture will be thick.

5) Keep in the fridge overnight.

6) Enjoy one small bite at a time.

Enjoy / Bonne dégustation!

---

---

© Copyright Content and Pictures ZistAndThat 2015

Almost like a Cheesecake Ricotta cake

Whenever I am looking for an Italian recipe, I head to the mouthwatering blog Un Dejeuner de Soleil, by Edda Onorato. As I had some Ricotta in my fridge and I was craving for trying a sweet ricotta recipe, I browsed her blog. I found this wonderful cake recipe, called Budino. Everyone loved it and it tastes actually pretty close to a cheesecake with a nice earthy texture !

For those you can’t read French or Italian, here is the original recipe from Edda. Below, my customized version of it 🙂

 

INGREDIENTS FOR 3 RAMEKINS

– 150g Ricotta
– 70g almond meal (50g in the original recipe)
– 20g sugar (50-60g in the original recipe)
– 2 eggs (2 1/2 eggs in the original recipe)
– Juice of half a lemon (the zest of 1/2 lemon)

 

____________________

DIRECTIONS

1) Preheat oven to 320 degrees F.

2) Smash the ricotta and whisk it with the almond meal and sugar.

3) Whisk the eggs. Mix everything together.

4) Add the lemon juice last.

5) Bake in the oven at 320 degrees F for 20-30 minutes.

Enjoy / Bonne dégustation!

---

---

© Copyright Content and Pictures ZistAndThat 2015

Toddler adapted apple cake

This apple cake is one of my mom staples. It’s full of love and “gourmandise” and evening memories.

The apples should be diced to have them sweetly melt into your mouth but if you want to play it really safe with toddlers, especially if you’re hosting, you can grate them.

 

INGREDIENTS FOR A CAKE

– 1/3 cup of canola oil
– 3 eggs
– 1 cup and 1/4 white flour (125g)
– 2 tsp of baking powder
– 1/4 cup sugar (50g)
– 4 apples (or 2 apples and 2 pears)
– 1 tsp cardamom

____________________

DIRECTIONS

1) Dice or grate the apples.

2) Mix all the ingredients together.

3) Add the apples.

4) Bake in the oven at 320 degrees F for 45 minutes.

Enjoy / Bonne dégustation!

---

---

© Copyright Content and Pictures ZistAndThat 2015

From Summer to Fall recipes 2/2 : Fruits Salad

The wonderful treat about summer is that you really don’t have to bake hard to present your guests with a delicious desserts. If you select your fruits right, any kind of fruits salad will do it. Fruits salad can also be a wonderful dessert to serve even as we enter the fall. As you can no longer rely on juicy peaches, colorful berries and delicious apricots, you will only have to work harder for 1 extra-minute to make your apples/pears and late berries salad tastes as good.

Some chefs will favor the preparing of a spiced syrup that you’ll lacquer the fruits with to enhance their taste. That’s too much work and to sweet for me. I keep the spices but skip the syrup.

INGREDIENTS FOR A FRUITS SALAD

– Any kind of fall fruits (pears, apples, grapes…)
– Lemon juice
– Cardamom
– Orange flavor water

 

____________________

DIRECTIONS

1) Prepare the fruits for the salad.

2) Add the lemon juice. Toss

3) Add the cardamom and the orange flavor water. Toss.

Enjoy / Bonne dégustation!

---

---

© Copyright Content and Pictures ZistAndThat 2015