Lemon passion fruit semolina cake

I know it is bit late but I think it is never to late for a happy new year! I hope this year will be all that you want it to be.

Looking back at last year I can say that it’s been a very good one. Now that I’ve think about it, I don’t think I had any bad year at all. Or maybe I’m just good at ignoring any bad past.

Anyway it’s been really good taking a break from blogging and focusing more on getting healthier. I’ve stopped running since the days are getting shorter and the nights longer, but as soon as the temperature goes up to somewhat decent running temperature; I will be picking up where I left. Still have that wedding to go to in June...So far I haven’t gain any kilos, but I’m afraid I can’t hold that off for long.

I checked my pantry and notice that I had a bag of Semolina that was about to expire. I looked everywhere for a recipe and then I remembered that my Greek neighbor use to make semolina cake. All the recipes I saw were using 6 or more eggs. Somehow I just can’t justify using 6 eggs just for 1 cake. So lucky I found this recipe and decided to tweak it a little: http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/20192/lemon+semolina+cake

For the cake I used:

-       130 grams of unsalted room temperature butter

-       ½ cup of sugar

-       Zest of one lime

-       2 eggs

-       ½ cup of milk

-       2/3 cups of all purpose flour

-       1 ½ cups of semolina

-       1 teaspoon of baking soda

-       ½ teaspoon of salt

Since I had a lot of passion fruits I decided to use them in the syrup.

-       ¼ cup of passion fruit juice

-       1 cup of water

-       1 cup of sugar

-       Juice of 1 small lime

-       Pinch of salt

I started with creaming the sugar, the butter and the lime zest. 

Then one by one I added the eggs. After the eggs were incorporated I added the milk.

I preheated the oven on 180C degrees.

In a different bowl I mixed the flour, semolina, baking soda and the salt. After the milk was mixed in I added the dry ingredients. I used a spatula to mix it a bit first and then with the hand mixer I made sure everything was mixed well.

I use a bit of butter to grease a square baking tin and added the mixture. I made sure it was somewhat flat on top.

The cake was in the oven for about 40 minutes.

This gives me more than enough time to make the syrup. I cut about 7-8 passion fruits in half and scooped out the seeds. It went into a pot and on the fire so it can boil for a little. After that I drained the seeds and poured 1 cup of water on top. I made sure I extracted as much flavor as I could. Then the pot went back on the fire. After it boiled it added 1 cup of sugar, a pinch of salt and the juice of 1 small lemon. I let the syrup boil for about 8 minutes.

By now the cake is done and has a really nice golden crust. To make sure the syrup can go through the whole cake I punched some holes. Then I poured about 2/3 of the hot syrup on the hot cake.

After it cooled for a bit I cut the cake in squares. I can see that the cake has not sucked up all the syrup so lucky I had some left so I could pour a bit more on top.

It was a very nice and easy cake to make. The only thing I would do different is I would double the amount of syrup so I can let the cake soak in more and maybe shorten the oven time to 30 minutes. This time I only poured it on top so the cake wasn't wet enough for me. Still a very good first try.

The mini series: lemon poppy seed cupcakes

Have you missed it? I know I have. It’s been way too long since I did my last mini series and now since I started yesterday I can’t seem to stop. You all know I’m not a much of a baker. I like to “wing it” too much and I can’t seem to follow a recipe. On top of that most recipes call for bigger quantities that good for me. So that’s another reason why I love my mini cupcake mold so much. I don’t feel so bad if I pop one or two or more in my mouth.

Yesterday I made chocolate lava mini cakes and they were great!! Wait there’s more…

They were so great we finished one whole batch in a couple of seconds. Unfortunately since I wasn’t planning on blogging about it I didn’t make notes of the measurements. I know it had some butter, 1 egg, 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder, 4 tablespoons of sugar, 3 tablespoons of all purpose flour, some baking powder and of course some bits of dark chocolate. I mixed everything together and baked it for 20 minutes in a preheated oven of 180C degrees.

Voila mini chocolate lava cakes!

I’m going to remake these and write down the measurements, promise!

After yesterdays adventure I thought about making it again today. You can’t have enough chocolate, but I was craving something else. Something tangy with a bit of a twist. I looked in my cabinet and there it was…one jar of poppy seeds. That together with some lemon makes a terrific combo for these cupcakes. So I grabbed a pen and paper and started writing things down.

This recipe only makes 21 mini cupcakes so don’t invite too many people over:

- 100 grams of butter

- 4 tablespoons of sugar

- ½ teaspoon of salt

- 3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice

- 1 egg

- 4 tablespoons of all purpose flour

- ½ teaspoon baking powder

- 1 teaspoon of lemon zest

- 1 tablespoon of poppy seeds 

I started with mixing the room temperature butter with the sugar and salt. Then I added the lemon juice, lemon zest and one egg.

When everything was combined and the sugar dissolved I added the flour and the baking powder and gave it a good whisk.

Last but not least I added the poppy seeds. 

Did I mention that I didn’t use a mixer this time but did everything by hand? It was a good work out; 2 cupcakes more for me =)

I preheated the oven on 180C degrees and started to fill the molds.

I baked the cakes for 20 minutes till they were golden brown and put them on a rack to cool.

Of course one or two mysteriously disappeared. But they left a nice sweet, tangy and nutty flavor.

Don’t you just love the poppy seeds just pops in your mouth when you bite them?

I called my sister down and some more cupcakes disappeared. I don’t think they will survive the night. I better get some before they're gone.

Lemon tiramisu

Yesterday it was what we call Good Friday. Here in Holland it is not an official holiday, but my company decided to give us a day off so we could enjoy a long Easter holiday. As much as I love a day off, I always end up being more tired then I would be if I would just go to work. Instead of just enjoying the day and do noting, I actually woke up early to bring the hubby to work. After that I did all the grocery for today’s BBQ and on top of that I cleaned the whole house. This time I actually sat on my knees and scrub the tile floor. Or I did part of it. I finished the diner area and the kitchen and I was pooped! At least I vacuum cleaned the rest of the house so no guilt feelings there.

I bought 2 kilos of pork ribs and 4 kilos of chicken wings I wanted to marinate one day before. It took quite some time to chop and clean them and get them ready for the marinate. Next time when I’m not so busy I can actually take pictures and show you how, because everyone seem to like my marinate. I think I should put it in a jar and sell it.

Anyhow after all this I had to go to the supermarket to get some mascarpone for that night’s dessert. Our neighbor invited us over for a BBQ and I always bring dessert. I thought this time I try something new. Since the weather was so nice and hot I decided to make something refreshing. Remember that lemon curd I made earlier...I used halve a jar to make Lemon tiramsu. And once you've got the lemon curd down, the rest is a piece of cake.

So for this delicious summer delight I used my homemade lemon curd, some crema di lemoncello, 250 ml whipping cream, 250 gr mascarpone and some ladyfingers.

First I started by mixing the whipping cream with some sugar. I think I used about 2 tablespoons.  

 Then when the cream is almost stiff I left it and put the ladyfingers in a tray. 

In a different bowl I mixed the mascarpone with 2,5 good tablespoons of lemon curd and a splash of lemoncello. 

After the lemon curd is well incorporate in the mascarpone I put the whole mixture in the same bowl as the whipping cream. I know some people rather fold everything together, but I use my mixer just to incorporate everything. It will still be light and airy because I didn’t over mix the whipping cream.

Then I poured some lemoncello on the ladyfingers and topped them with 2 tablespoons of lemon curd.

I tried to spread it out evenly. All the ladyfingers should be covered with this goodie.

I poured half of the mascarpone mixture on top of the ladyfingers and added some more ladyfingers. Of course I gave them another splash of lemoncello.

To make it look pretty I sprinkled some lemon zest on top. I covered the tray and put it in the fridge. At this time it was 3 pm already.

I got the tiramisu out at around 7.30 pm and by that time it was in the fridge for 4-5 hours. And I was crossing my fingers that it turned out good. 

And it was good!! The ladyfingers didn’t have enough time to get soggy so they were still a bit crunchy. But the mascarpone was so nice and refreshing. We still had about half a tray left for the neighbors to enjoy today. They couldn’t believe this was my first time making it and would love to be guinea pigs again. This would be a keeper for whenever I have lemon curd. And the neighbors will be there to help me finish it.

It was a great way to end Good Friday.

Lemon Curd

I have always been so intrigued by lemon curd. And I only had it once! And not even in England (to me lemon curd just screams England). I had it at a friend’s place in Houston. England is like 45 minutes flight away and I had my first lemon curd in the USA.

She made pancakes and had several jams, honey and lemon curd to go with it. I’ve heard about it, but never had the chance to try so of course I had a pancake with lemon curd. And it was sooooooo good! It was tangy, sweet and creamy. Right there and then I decided that whenever I go to England I would try and find some to bring back home. Because I always travel with hand luggage (yes I am a very very light traveler) and due to flight restrictions I can never bring back any liquid. So till now I haven’t had any lemon curd =(

But that's about to change. I've been so adventures the last couple of weeks so I thought why not. Let’s give it a try. I have lemons sitting in my fridge anyway. So I went searching for a great lemon curd recipe. Google is my best friend when it comes to experimenting in the kitchen. It gives me answers to all my questions.

Most recipes were pretty much the same. You only need 4 ingredients to make lemon curd; lemons, sugar, butter and eggs. All ingredients everyone has in their kitchen. For this lemon curd I used:

-          100 gr room temperature butter

-          200 gr sugar

-          300 ml fresh lemon juice

-          1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest

-          2 eggs

-          2 egg yolks

My butter came straight out of the fridge so I had to cut them in small bits to they could come to room temperature faster.

While I was waiting for the butter I used about 1,5 lemon to get a teaspoon of lemon zest. I sprinkled some sugar on the zest so that they could release that nice lemony flavor.  

 

I don’t have a juicer so I always use a fork. I just stick the fork right in the lemon and twist and squish as much as I can. Works every time and saves me space in my pantry. Don’t bother to remove the seeds. It all goes through a strainer anyway. I had 3 big juicy lemons, which gave me around 300 ml juice.

I started to cream the butter and the sugar while the butter was not entirety on room temperature. Big mistake as bits of sugar coated butter was flying through my kitchen. And using a small bowl didn’t help either. So I put everything in a bigger bowl and used a fork to mix the butter with the sugar first. Then I use the mixer to smoothen it out.

Then I added the 2 whole eggs and 2 egg yolks one by one.

In goes the sugary lemon zest.

 

 

Last but not least the fresh lemon juice goes in. I used a strainer to get all the seeds and pulp out. Only the lemon juice is good enough.

Mix everything together and pour the whole mixture to a pot. At this point it doesn’t look appealing, but that will change once the heat hits it. 

I added half a teaspoon of salt and heated it on medium heat. It took at least 15 minutes before it started to thicken. I didn't want to put the heat too high and risk making scrambled lemon eggs. So I took my sweet time. Better safe then sorry.

You know the mixture has the right thickness when you leave a line on your spatula that keeps its shape, or when you blow in the mixture you get wrinkles. What you are looking for is a thick custard like mixture. 

Once you reached that stage pour the lemon curd in a clean jar and flip it upside down for a couple of minutes. This would help vacuum sealing it.

That looks so good! I can’t wait to try it. It is sitting in my fridge now, but I had a lick out of the pot after I poured it in a jar. It was so jummie! Very good lemon flavor and more tangy then sweet. Can’t believe how easy it was. Love homemade food!

Christmas Eve

When I grew up Christmas Eve was the best day of the year. We would first go to church and after that it was time to open the presents. Now that we all have our own house we don’t get together till the 25^th.

I only had to work till 2 pm on Christmas Eve so I had a little bit time for some last minute shopping. When I came home my neighbor, Georgia was waiting for me and asked me to come over so she can give me a little something. Since we had a little present for Spyros I brought that with me also. Her dad just came over from Greece and brought some traditional Greek treats and her mom even baked some as well.

The dark brown cookies covered with nuts were home made. The rest were store bought.

Then our Portuguese neighbors brought us something typical Portuguese. 

I forgot to ask what it was but it looked like some kind of noodles baked in custard with lots of cinnamon. It took me a while to see, but the 2 pieces on top were something like in milk soaked French bread baked with cinnamon. It smelled really good.

Since they all brought me something, I had to make something also. I bought some smoked mackerel which I turned into an appetizer.

SMOKED MACKEREL APPETIZER

Once you cleaned the mackerel you can make this appetizer in a couple of minutes.

I bought 3 mackerel at a fish stand so there was plenty to give out. I think “fresh” smoked mackerel is much better then the pre-packed you can buy in the supermarket.

First I took the head and all the skin off.

Then I tried to get all the bones out. Of course the big bone in the middle of the fish is the easiest, as well as the bones in the belly area. The rest of the bones were kinda small and hard to find. If you don’t want to get your hands dirty you can also buy the mackerel filets.

I sliced some onion, chopped some garlic and sautéed it in olive oil until they brown and then added the mackerel filet.

I stir-fried everything together and added some fresh grounded pepper and some Maggi. The mackerel is quite fatty so you don’t need to add any extra oil. I tried to removed some more bones. Can’t get them all, but can sure try.

I served it warm with some plain crackers.

After making this appetizer it was time for the main course. We had duck breast with sauerkraut mash potatoes and caramelized fennel. I also invited my sister for dinner and since she doesn’t like duck I made something else for her. I went to the supermarket and bought some pre-packed pork roast and some sweet potato. During the holidays supermarkets have what I call “the lazy” meal packages that you only have to heat up or put in the oven. It contains the more luxurious meats or fish and there are all kinds of different side dishes and desserts. And it actually tastes pretty decent, so if you want a relaxed Christmas, this is the way to go.

The sweet potato came with pecan nuts and plump raisons. It was surpose to be seasoned with sweet chili, but it tasted more like they used Moroccan spices.

This was the easiest meal every, put together in no time. 

Now let me show you how I made our Christmas Eve meal.

DUCK BREAST WITH SAUERKRAUT MASH POTATOES AND CARAMELIZED FENNEL

First I boiled some potatoes with some bouillon and two cloves of garlic.

These fennel bulbs were firm, shinny and very fresh. I chopped the stems off and popped them in the freezer so I can use them for soup or stew later.

I sliced it in even parts.

I put some olive oil and butter in the pan and stir-fried the fennel. When they started to soften I added some salt, pepper and sugar. The sugar will burn a little and give the fennel color and flavor. When everything is cooked I added some of the fennel leaves to give it some more color.

I scored the duck skin and marinated it for a day with salt, pepper and garlic powder. This time I forgot to put a little bit of Chinese five spices powder. I baked it in a medium hot pan without any oil on the skin side first. The skin will release a lot of fat. Once the skin is brown and crunchy I flipped it on the meat side and baked it in its own fat. Duck tastes best when it is still a little pink on the inside. About 15-20 minute on low/medium heat should do it. Make sure you let it rest of a couple of minutes before you cut it.  

While the duck was backing I added the sauerkraut, which I soaked and rinsed with water, to the potato and let it boil for about 5 minutes. Then I mashed everything together. Since I used the bouillon I didn’t need to add any other seasoning. 

And now it is time to plate up.

This plate of goodies took me about 30-45 minutes to make.

I also had time to whisk up a dessert, thanks to my co-worker's recipe. Since it was an experiment, I didn’t take any picture of how I made it. I wanted to see how it turned out first, but since it was so good I will share it. You can't believe how easy it was.

LEMON WHIP CREAM DELIGHT

All you need is 4 main ingredients:
- 3 table spoons of sherry
- about 400 ml whipping cream
- 1 very juicy lemon
- 2 table spoons of sugar

To make it looks nice:
- frozen summer fruit
- bitterkoekjes (Dutch macaroons, made of bitter almonds, sugar and egg whites)

First you mix the lemon juice with the sugar. For a nice fresh dessert you need it to be a little bit more sour then sweet. If 2 table spoons of sugar is not enough then add a little bit more. In the same bowl you’ll add the sherry and the whipping cream. Mix till it is firm, but still liquid. Don’t over whip it. It will firm up quickly so make sure you pour it out fast.

To make everything look nice, I put some frozen summer fruit, over which I poured some more cherry and some crumbled “bitterkoekjes” at the bottom of a glass. On top of that I poured the lemon whip cream mixture. It has to sit in the fridge for at least 2 hours to firm up.

I have to admit, I used quite big glasses and it was a little bit too much. Next time I will put it in smaller glasses or bowls.

It was a very good ending of a very good meal. And the best of all, it was very very easy to make. It will even taste good the next day, if it lasts that long.