Pear chips with almond and coconut

5 Comments October 31, 2013 Rita Anastasiou

Recently, Anna is eating a lot of dried fruits! She loves them, she’s getting greedy sometimes…! So, I decided that it could be much cheaper and tastier, to make my own dried fruits.

I chose pears. Naturally sweet and full of flavor! I think is an alternative way to trick your kids. Some kids don’t like fruits and this is an idea of give them something naturally sweet!

the ingredients are really easy! This recipe is for one pear. Preferably Asian.

Preheat the oven at 250 F.

Mix:

• 1/2 tsp. shredded ginger
• 1 tbsp shredded coconut
• orange zest and 1 tbsp of orange juice
• 1 tbsp. almond flakes
• brown sugar (optional)

Mix all these ingredients.

Cut the pear very thin.

Place the pear slices on a baking rack,spread the almond-coconut mix and bake approximately for hour and a half or until crispy.

 

The pear chips are really delicious!! The whole house had that unique aroma from the coconut,almond and orange! Anna loved them!

I hope you enjoyed!

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Pineapple cupcake and Quick tiramisu-Toblerone cupcake

4 Comments October 24, 2013 Rita Anastasiou

After Anna’s birthday,I don’t make desserts very often… I had it enough with all these candies and chocolates! But,about a week ago, we had a coffee with my friend Jelena,to our friend’s house Natasha and I thought that it would be really nice to make cupcakes and put them in a cupcake box,that I purchased in Walmart.

I made a pineapple cupcake with coconut frosting and vanilla cupcake with Coffee frosting.

George bought bunch of Toblerone, you see.. It’s our favorite chocolate since we were kids!

So,let’s go to make the cupcakes! The recipe really easy. You don’t have to mess with difficult recipes and try to make it fancy! Just be yourself an and try to make it look pretty…!

For the pineapple cupcakes:

I took the basic recipe and I added 1/2 cup pineapple chunks and 1/4 cup pineapple juice. Be careful with the consistency of the batter. If you see it’s very runny,add little bit more rice flour.

I used the frosting from cupcake in a jar that I made for Anna’s birthday, I just added 1/4 cup shredded coconut And 1 tsp. amaretto (That’s optional,but it gives really great flavor!)

For the tiramisu cupcakes with Toblerone:

I made the basic recipe for cupcakes. I made an easy “syrup”: 1 tbsp coca powder,1 tsp instant coffee granules,Dissolved in 1 tbsp of water. Put the “syrup” on top of the cupcakes.

the frosting is the same as the one I used in Anna’s birthday (as you can see, I fall in love with that frosting!) but I added little bit of instant coffee. Sprinkle a little bit of cocoa powder on top,put a piece of Toblerone  and that’s it!

I also put a little bit of pineapple chunks and little bit of pineapple juice in the vanilla frosting. I frost the vanilla cupcakes and I add a piece of Toblerone.

The cupcakes were so airy and delicious! The pineapple and coconut really great combination! The only think that you have to do is to play with the flavors and colors!

So.. What do you think?

I hope you enjoyed the as much as we did!!

Birthday Cupcake in a jar!

2 Comments October 16, 2013 Rita Anastasiou

Last week we were again very busy…We had to organize Anna’s first birthday! We celebrate her birthday on a restaurant,so I didn’t prepare anything! Only the favor bags with the  cupcake in the jar. It is a very nice gift for the kids!

It was really great! Of course we made it the Greek-Serbian way! Which means…a lot of food and music! Kids wer

The base for the cupcake is the basic that I used before from previous recipe,I deduct rum and I  added 1/3 melted white chocolate and I substitute lime with orange juice and zest.

I found a very nice frosting that can stay out of the fridge more than 3 hours! It stayed during the party. The frosting is really simple.

You’ll need:

• 8 oz mascarpone
• 1 cup powder sugar
• 1 cup whip cream
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• zest from one orange
• 1 tsp. almond extract
• 1/4 shredded coconut
• food coloring
• 8 oz jars
• ribbons
• mini spoons
• stickers

Beat mascarpone and powder sugar till cream.

With a spatula,fold the whip cream. Add the rest of the ingredients,leave for last the coconut.

Cut the cooled cupcake in half. Add the one slice on the bottom of the jar. With a pipping bag add the frosting,add some raspberries or any other fruit that you like and then again the other half of the cupcake and on top of that the frosting.

Put the lid on,.Stick a nice sticker on top of that,as I did. Wrap it with a nice ribbon and on the side put the mini spoon. you cupcake in a jar is ready!

 

*My photos are not the best,because I was in a hurry to get everything done!

4 ingredient mini mocha souffle with raspberries!

5 Comments October 7, 2013 Rita Anastasiou

All the three of us,George,Anna and me,had been sick for about a week and the strangest of all is that Anna has more energy than ever and big appetite,whereas her father and me were  barely eating twice a day! I was so sick that I couldn’t even eat chocolate…It was THAT bad!

 Good thing is,we recovered ,that’s why I’ve made a quick and easy chocolate souffle,to gain the lost pounds that we lost from sickness…! I just found an excuse to eat something sweet…!!

The ingredients that you need are:

• 1 cup of Nutella
• 2 eggs
• raspberries
• 1 tbsp. instant coffee

That’s it!!

Preheat the oven at 350 F.

Beat the eggs in the highest speed in a hand mixer until they are double their size and creamy.

In a medium bowl put the Nutella and put it in the microwave for about 30 seconds.

Fold the 1/3 of the egg mixture in Nutella and then add the rest. Then add the coffee and mix again.

Place mini muffin cups on a mini muffin tin,add the mixture and then put a raspberry on the center.

Bake for 13 minutes.

Let them cool for 10 minutes and then devour them!

Their center is moist,fruity and  the house had the smell of baked nutella!

Of course you can put any fruit you want. I always have raspberries on my fridge.

 

There are perfect with a glass of milk,cup of tea or a cup of coffee!

 

Cake with coconut cream and wine-poached fruits!

2 Comments October 1, 2013 Rita Anastasiou

Every year,there is a Greek Festival here in Las Vegas and hundreds of people attend,not only Greeks,but any other nationality! Is really wonderful! I don’t have any Greek friends here(that’s funny thing for a Greek to say!),and it was really touching,listening Greek music and speak Greek again after so long ,besides few people from Greece that I kept contact with(including my family).  Anna was dancing,or at least was moving in the rhythm of the Greek music,eating tzatziki(garlicy yogurt&cucumber sauce). We had a bast! Is good once in a while to reunite with people from your country…!

Anna and me 🙂

While I was drinking my red wine,an idea came to me..Why not poaching fruits and make a cake with them? As a cake and coconut cream I used the Bite-size cookie cake that I made month and a half ago.

But in the cream,I add coconut milk instead of whole moil and 1 tbsp of coconut butter on the end.

To poach the fruits:

• 1 cup red wine
• 1/4 cups dried figs
• 3 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp. cocoa powder
• pinch of anise powder or 1 star anise
• pinch of all spice
• 1 small cinnamon stick
• 1 pear,peeled and sliced

In a small pot put all the ingredients together and in a medium heat, let the wine reduce and the fruits to be more tender, for about 10-15 minutes. Separate the fruits from the sauce.

Preheat oven at 350 F.

Grease 3 ramekins,put the cake batter,1- 1 1/2 tbsp of the cream and some of the poached fruits.Not the sauce!

Bake for 25 minutes,until the top of the cake is golden brown

Let it cool and add more of the fruits on top and of course the wine sauce!

Is really unbelievably perfect! The flavors are well combined and the dessert is cohesive.

Enjoy!