Sparkling Wine Jelly with Strawberries and Sweet Cherries

 

 

 

The older I am the more I appreciate time spent with my family. I think it's because I'm more aware of the passing of time, I'm more aware what is really important in life.

 

Food plays a big part in my family gatherings. Not only because we like eating, but also because it gives us an opportunity to show love and care through cooking and serving meals made with heart. It gives an opportunity to share, to talk and laugh, to feel happy and relaxed. There is something deep and important in gathering around the table with people close to you and it doesn't matter if there is a plenty of food on it or only a soup and bread. For me these little, precious moments of cooking together and eating together are some of the most important things in life.

 

 

 

 

I made this sparkling wine jelly with my Mum. We had a lot of fun trying to arrange the cherries with stalks up. Be aware - it's quite tricky! This dessert is simple but quite sophisticated. It's also light therefore perfect for this time of year. And definitely for grown-ups and wine lovers. If you want to make it for kids just use non-alcoholic sparkling wine.

  

 

 

 

Sparkling Wine Jelly with Strawberries and Sweet Cherries

 

 

Ingredients:

 

serves: 6

 

1 bottle (750 ml.) of white semi - dry sparkling wine (I used Prosecco)

 

3 tsp. powdered gelatin

 

4 Tsp. sugar (I used unrefined demerara sugar) - adjust based on your preference and sweetness of wine

 

42 small strawberries, hulled

 

18 sweet cherries with stalks

 

 

Heat one cup of the sparkling wine with the sugar in a saucepan. Add the powdered gelatin and simmer (do not allow to boil!) stirring very gently  until the gelatin and sugar have completely dissolved. Turn off the heat, add the rest of wine and stir to combine. Pour the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into 6 dessert/cocktail glasses and add an equal mixture of fruit to each glass. Transfer to the fridge to chill for at least 4 hours or overnight, until set. 

 

 

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Strawberry Smoothie

 

 

 

Sweet, candy strawberries - a quintessence of summer. I've been eating them like crazy lately because they taste the best at this time of year. Of course my favourite ones are with cream and sugar, but I also have a lighter and healthier option in a pocket. And equally delicious.

 

This strawberry smoothie has strong strawberry flavour with a hint of creaminess given by yogurt. When you use ripe and sweet strawberries only a little bit of sugar or other sweetener is needed. Every sip tastes like summer. 

  

 

 

image: Facebook

 

Strawberry Smoothie


Ingredients:

for 1 large portion (about 1 cup)


2 large handfuls of strawberries

4 Tbsp. natural yogurt

2 tsp. agave syrup or light honey or brown sugar

1-2 ice cubes (optional)


Combine all ingredients in a blender and whizz until smooth.

Enjoy!

 

recipe source: the food haven


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Asparagus, Cherry Tomatoes and Ricotta Tart

“Life always gives us
exactly the teacher we need
at every moment.
This includes every mosquito,
every misfortune,
every red light,
every traffic jam,
every obnoxious supervisor (or employee),
every illness, every loss,
every moment of joy or depression,
every addiction,
every piece of garbage,
every breath.

Every moment is the guru.”
― Charlotte Joko Beck

Yes, illness. Actually, stomach bug.

You were ill and exhausted. You didn't have appetite, you didn't have strength and will to cook, to work, your laptop was turned off. You had to stop and rest. You had got time to read a lot. And think a lot.

And suddenly you realized that this book* which you were reading was exactly what you needed in this moment of your life. It taught you something. And also this illness and this time for thinking were teachers. They showed you some things in a different light, from a different angle. The real you. The juicy life. Suddenly some things started to seem so simple, other - less important. A pressure that you had felt for days disappeared. Another lesson learned. 

So, the tart. Even if my blog's name suggest you that everything here is made from scratch, sometimes it's not. Because sometimes I'm too lazy to make something or too afraid of making something. A puff pastry is one of those things. I'm lazy to make it because it's time-consuming, I'm afraid to make it because...it's time- consuming. But I have a  rescuer from this situation. It's a store-bought, all-butter, good quality puff pastry. I like to have it in the freezer. When I need it, I just leave it in the fridge overnight or for a few hours at room temperature. I roll it out, make some topping ( and here only my imagination is a limit) and I have a delicious meal or appetizer in minutes.

Asparagus, Cherry Tomatoes and Ricotta Tart

Ingredients:

serves: 4 as a main course or 8 as a starter


500 gram package all-butter puff pastry,  thawed according to package directions

250 gram ricotta cheese

200 ml. creme fraiche

2 medium eggs + 1 egg for brushing, beaten

20 gram grated Parmesan

finely grated zest of 1 lemon

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 tsp. dried thyme

small asparagus bunch (about 85 gram), trimmed

250 gram cherry tomatoes

salt, freshly ground pepper

baby basil leaves for garnish (regular basil will do)



Preheat the oven to 200 C degrees.

Mix the ricotta cheese with the eggs, creme fraiche, Parmesan, lemon zest, lemon juice and thyme. Season with salt and pepper.Set aside.

Line a large baking sheet pan with parchment paper.

Unfold the pastry sheet on a lightly floured surface. Roll the pastry into a 38 x 30 cm rectangle, about 5 mm. in thickness. Place the pastry on the prepared baking sheet pan. Fold over the edges about 1 1/2 cm on all sides, pressing firmly with a fork to form a rim. Brush the pastry and the rim of the pastry with the beaten egg.

Spread the ricotta mixture on the pastry. Arrange the asparagus and tomatoes.

Bake for 30 mins until the tart is puffed up and golden. Serve warm, scattered with the basil leaves.

* this book is "Consolation" by Anna Gavalda.



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Rhubarb and Pear Tart with Almond Filling

There are cakes which seduce us by their look - all this beautifully decorated layer cakes with fancy frosting or colourful fresh fruit cakes, especially with berries laying on the whipping cream cloud. They take advantage of their beauty and disappear as the first from cafe window display. Eating with the eyes - I'm sure you know what I mean;)

If I saw this rhubarb tart among those cakes, it probably wouldn't be my first choice. And it would be a pity because I would lose an occasion to taste really great cake. Actually, the best rhubarb cake I have ever baked. And, as a rhubarb lover, I've had quite a few in my life.
It looks humble but tastes great. I'm not such talented photographer like Jonathan Lovekin, my favourite one, who, I'm sure, would be able to show secret beauty of this tart, so you will have to believe my words and bake it. If you are a rhubarb fan - you will have another proof that you are right in your liking. If you think that you don't like rhubarb - it is a big chance that you will change your mind after one piece. My husband who isn't so enthusiastic about rhubarb as I, said it was delicious. You don't have to be afraid about sour taste of rhubarb - it is perfectly balanced by sufficient amount of sugar (it is a cake after all!), sweet pear and lovely almond filling.

Rhubarb and Pear Tart with Almond Filling

Ingredients:

tart pan 24 - 26 cm/ 9.5 - 10 inches in diameter


for pastry: 

100 gram/ approx. 3.5 oz butter

170 gram/ 6 oz gram plain flour

60 gram/ approx. 2.1 oz caster sugar (I used unrefined golden caster sugar)

1-2 egg yolks (depends on how large eggs you use - I used 2 yolks from organic medium eggs)

1 Tbsp. creme fraiche or sour cream

a pinch of salt


for rhubarb

500 gram/ approx. 1.1 lbs. rhubarb, cut into 1 cm/ half an inch long pieces

6 Tbsp. sugar (I used demerara sugar)

finely grated zest of one small orange, preferably organic or unwaxed

2 Tbsp. water


for almond filling

100 gram/ approx. 3.5 oz finely ground almonds

100 gram/ approx. 3.5 oz caster sugar ( I used unrefined golden caster sugar)

3 eggs, whites and yolks separated

1 tsp. lemon juice


plus 1 medium pear, peeled, cored and cut into slices length wise.


To make a pastry cut the butter into cubes, then, using your fingers, rub into the flour mixed with sugar and salt, until the mixture resembles fine fresh  breadcrumbs. Mix in the egg, cream, then bring mixture together into a ball with your hands (add the second yolk if the mixture seems too dry). This requires minimal kneading - the less it is kneaded, the more crumbly and light it will be after baking.
You can make it using food processor: put the sugar, flour and salt into a food processor and pulse until combined. Add the butter and pulse until crumbly. Add the egg yolk and cream and pulse until the dough begins to form a mass (add the second yolk if the mixture seems too dry).Form a ball with your hands, wrap in an aluminium foil or greaseproof paper and refrigerate for an hour (or overnight).

Meanwhile put the rhubarb, sugar, orange peel and water into a pot. Bring to a simmer. When the rhubarb starts to soften and liquefy, take off the heat and let stand for about 30 min. Then strain carefully.

Remove the pastry from the fridge and roll out on the work surface dusted with flour to make the circle a couple of centimeters larger then tart pan. Gently, transfer the dough into the pan and lightly press it into place. Roll the rolling pin over the pan to trim off the excess dough. You can line the tart with pastry using your hands - tear small amounts of pastry and press to a bottom and edges of the pan forming an even layer. Place the tart pan in the fridge for 30 min.

Preheat the oven to 180 C/ 356 F degrees.

Line the tart shell with an aluminium foil or greaseproof paper and fill it with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 10 min., then remove the foil and bake for another 5 min.

Meantime, in a large mixing bowl beat the egg yolks with sugar until creamy. In a separate bowl whisk the egg whites and lemon juice until firm and glossy. Mix the creamy yolks and sugar mixture with the almonds, then very delicately fold in the egg whites.

Spread the rhubarb on the pre-baked pastry base, lay out the pear pieces, pour in the almond filling and bake for 25 - 30 min. Leave to cool in the pan. Dust with icing sugar before serving. It tastes great served with a little bit of whipped cream

inspiration: almond and orange tart with rhubarb from "White Plate. Słodkie" by Eliza Mórawska


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Asparagus, Marinated Courgette and Barley Lunchbox Salad

“When a woman conceives her true self, a miracle occurs and life around her begins again.” 

                                                  ― Marianne Williamson

I was sipping my afternoon coffee. I don't remember if I also was working on something, or reading or just listening to some beautiful song playing on the radio. And it came. This feeling which is so hard to describe. I felt happy, I felt lucky, I felt that I'm on a right path in my life. I remember it because it is so unusual for me to feel this way, it used to be unusual. It has taken time, it has taken tears, many lessons have been learned, many books have been read and wise words have been taken to heart before I arrived to the place when, at least, I can think about myself that way. At least here I'm - I thought to myself - Now I know what I want and I know what I don't want, I'm more brave, I don't worry about everything. I choose to be kind to others because it costs nothing, but I know that I don't have to please everybody. I appreciate what I have, I started to like myself and believe in myself. And believe me, these are words not common from perfectionist mouth. 

Of course not everything is perfect. There is too much of this, too less of that. There are moments of doubt. But maybe if everything was perfect I would not appreciate it, I would take it for granted. I only know that there is already a lot of beauty in my life and inside me I have a feeling, that with hard work, persistence, courage and belief  many things dear to me are possible. A woman is like a wine, they say. I agree.

When sleeping women wake, mountains move - Chinese proverb.

In this joyful mood I offer you a salad. Colourful, light and simple. Full of vitamins and perfect for lunchbox.

If you've never eaten a barley I really encourage you to try it. Barley is a cereal grain with a rich nutty flavor and is a very good source of fibre and selenium, a good source of phosphorus, copper and manganese. Barley is rich in vitamin PP which helps to improve skin condition. It also have high content of niacin, a B vitamin that provides numerous protective actions against cardiovascular risk factors. But the most important advantage of barley is richness of soluble protein, which helps lower blood cholesterol levels. I use barley in soups, with sauces and now - in salad.
This is a type of salad perfect for lunch, it can be a great alternative to a pasta salad - it's light and absolutely healthy. Perfect for spring and summer time . Here is all-vegetable version but a handful of grated Parmesan would be a great addition.

Asparagus, Marinated Courgette and Barley Lunchbox Salad

Ingredients:

for 2 large or 4 small portions


100 gram pearl barley

one small or half medium courgette/ zucchini (about 150 gram)

small bunch of asparagus (about 125 gram), trimmed

8 - 12 cherry tomatoes, halved

1 small garlic clove, crushed (optional)

3 Tbsp. olive oil

3 Tbsp. lemon juice

a pinch of chilli flakes

1/2 - 1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

salt, freshly ground pepper

finely grated zest of one small lemon

a handful of basil leaves



Place the pearl barley in a small saucepan, cover with plenty of water and boil for 30 - 35 min., or until tender but with a bite. Drain into a sieve and leave to cool.

Meantime, cut the courgette length wise then finely slice each half width wise. Place the olive oil and lemon juice in a large bowl, add garlic (if using) and chilli flakes and mix to combine. Add the courgette and toss to coat then leave to marinate while barley is cooking and cooling.

Cover a bottom of a large deep sauté pan with a little bit of water (about 1 cm high), bring it to the boil, add asparagus spreads and cook in a simmering water for about 5 min or until just tender but with a bite. Cooking time depends on how fat asparagus you use, don't overcook them. Leave to cool then cut into approx. 3 cm pieces. Leave heads for decorating.

Add the cooked barley, asparagus stems and tomatoes into a bowl with marinated courgette. Season to taste with salt, pepper and balsamic vinegar and mix together well . Sprinkle with lemon zest and finish with asparagus heads and basil leaves. Leave aside for at least 30 min. for the flavours to mature.
If preparing for lunchbox you can assemble the salad the night before and keep in a fridge overnight (combine everything except the basil - add the basil on the next day) or cook and prepare all ingredients the night before and mix and season on the next day, before work.

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Chicken Breast Fillets Stuffed with Asparagus, Sun-dried Tomatoes and Lemony Mascarpone Cheese

I've learned how to cook from cook books (actually, I'm still learning). I like reading memories of others where they write how as children they where most interested with spoons and pots then dolls and teddy bears and cooked themselves an omelette after returning from school. I don't have any memories like this. The true is, when I was a child and teenager I had no interest in cooking. I didn't learn from my mom how to cook a soup, or bake a cake.

It started to change in my twenties. I began with simple dishes: spaghetti with tomato sauce, soups etc. No baking at that time, I was too afraid of it. And then I bought my first cookbook. Suddenly everything changed. I started too cook more complicated, more sophisticated dishes. And I was hungry for more. More cookbooks and more knowledge. It started to be a passion. It was because of  this beautiful blog that I started to bake. But I've learned how to do it from cookbooks.

I'm writing this all because of interview with Delia Smith I read yesterday. Mrs Smith is an English cook and television presenter, and the UK's best-selling cookery author, with more than 21 million copies sold ( "How to Cheat At Cooking" among others, where she is "helping busy cooks produce a full meal by assuring them it is acceptable to “cheat”, advocating a range of ready-made ingredients including frozen mashed potato and ready-made pancakes." ) She has recently launched an online cookery school. The Telegraph cites her words from interview in which she admitted that it is impossible to learn cooking from cookbooks "You can’t just open a book, go into a kitchen; you've got to have some lessons.”

I'm sorry, but I disagree with that. I can't count how many times I just opened a book and went to a kitchen. Of course reading everything carefully before. No, not everything was a success, there were many failures. But I've learned from them. I had read several books about bread before I took out a good one from my oven. And when I would like to bake my first croissants, I will surely reach for Julia Child's cookbook.

Don't get me wrong, I'm perfectly aware that what is good for me may not be good for others. I know that there are people who prefer learning from online tutorials or attending cookery classes. And that's good. I just want to to say that yes, it is possible to learn how to cook from cookbook. Maybe it depends on a cookbooks I choose, maybe I like it because I'm self-taugh type, maybe a love for cookbooks matters here. I don't know. But I disagree with Delia Smith in this matter. Whereas here are her another words and I'm all for them:

“Food isn’t theatre and to make it into theatre is wrong, it can speak for itself and it’s wonderful and it’s beautiful and it’s art – it’s everything."

I realized recently that there are no meat recipes on this blog. I wrote on my About  page that I eat meat very rarely but when you look back on previous posts it seems that it actually never happens. And it is not true, because even if I' m not a daily meat-eater I have a piece of chicken or pork tenderloin from time to time. Especially now, after holidays when we eat a lot of fish and seafood, I look with much more sympathetic eye on meat. So, I think it's a right time to present meat recipe on this blog. Let's start with chicken. Here is a simple recipe for stuffed chicken breasts. Perfect for light spring dinner.

Chicken Breast Fillets Stuffed with Asparagus, Sun-dried Tomatoes and Lemony Mascarpone Cheese


Ingredients:

serves: 4

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast fillets, preferably organic or free range

4 pinches of dried thyme

salt, freshly ground pepper


for filling:

4 Tbsp. mascarpone cheese

1 tsp. lemon zest (preferably from organic or unwaxed lemon)

1/2 tsp. fennel seeds, slightly crushed

a pinch of chilli flakes

4 sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil (drained)

12 asparagus spreads, trimmed

4 small rosemary twigs

4 tbsp olive oil and a little more for greasing a baking dish



Preheat the oven to 180 C /356 F degrees.

Grease a baking dish with a little bit of olive oil.

Combine the mascarpone cheese with lemon zest, fennel seeds and chilli flakes. Set aside.

Flatten chicken breasts between sheets of greaseproof paper to 1cm / about half an inch thickness. Season on both sides with salt, pepper and sprinkle with dried thyme. Divide mascarpone between chicken breasts, add one sundried tomato and 3 asparagus spreads to each breast and roll up them. Secure with toothpicks. Top each breast with rosemary twig. Transfer to slightly greased baking dish,  drizzle with olive oil and bake for 30 - 40 minutes or until chicken is fork tender and juices run clear (baking tame can vary depending on the oven, keep an eye on them). You may need cover asparagus heads with aluminium foil to prevent them for browning. Baste breast with olive oil in the baking dish in the middle of baking. Remove toothpicks if prefer, sprinkle each breast with a little bit of baking olive oil and serve with potatoes and simple salad. A glass of chilled white wine will be a great addition.

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Panna Cotta with Cointreau Roasted Rhubarb and Amaretti Biscuits

Yes, another dessert. Despite the fact that I want to keep diversity on this blog, it seems that it will be a lot of desserts here in the near future. There is abundance of spring fruits around us. And summer is just around the corner with its abundance of variety and flavours. And I love fruity desserts. In winter I prefer more rich flavours with chocolate at the spreadhead, but at spring and summertime I choose light, fruity and floral.

When I thought about introduction to this recipe I knew that I would like to write how cooking with rhubarb always brings back sweet memories of my childhood, especially one rhubarb cake. Meantime, lovely comment was written on my blog and through it I discovered that I'm not alone. Daytona writes in beautiful words about her memories. I have never had a rhubarb soup and when I will cook it, it surely be the one from Daytona's recipe.

So, I remember a cake. Rhubarb cake which my mother baked. With rhubarb and sweet meringue. Oh, I loved it. I still do, even if I haven't eaten it for ages. I remember sunny Saturday's afternoons, me, playing out with piece of still warm cake in one hand. Happy time. I also used to like eating raw rhubarb stalk coated with sugar. I don't think I could do this now. But then it was like playing with your  own senses: first -  face contorting sourness, intense sweetness later. Joy. I think this is an answer why I still like rhubarb so much - it brings back memories of lightheartedness and serenity, innocence of child and purity of spring blossom.

I made this panna cotta with agar agar which is a dried and powdered algae from Japan. It is used as a gelling agent, like gelatin. Agar also has nutritional properties: it helps digestion and elimination of toxins as it has approximately 80% fiber. It is calorie-free. Of course, you can make this panna cotta with gelatin. 2 grams of agar-agar powder replaces 3 sheets of gelatin, that is about 6 g. Just soak it in a bowl of water until soft, squeezed dry, then add to the simmering cream and milk mixture and continue to simmer until dissolved. You may need adjust sweetness of roasted rhubarb in this dessert. It isn't very sweet. Perfect for me, but if you have very sweet tooth just add more sugar. You can use orange juice instead of Cointreau.

Panna Cotta with Cointreau Roasted Rhubarb and Amaretti Biscuits

serves: 4

Ingredients:

The taste of panna cotta is directly proportional to the quality of ingredients you use to make it - use the best you can get, possibly organic.


for Roasted Rhubarb

Quantities below may give you a little more then you will need for the panna cotta but it is worth to make more because it is delicious. Try it with Greek yoghurt for your breakfast.

450 gram rhubarb stalks, washed, trimmed and sliced into 1 cm/ about half an inch pieces

4 Tbsp. sugar ( or more, I used unrefined demerara sugar)

3 Tbsp. Cointreau ( or orange juice)

finely grated zest of one small orange (preferably organic)


for Panna Cotta

250 ml fresh (double) cream ( I used organic cream)

250 ml whole milk (I used organic milk)

40 gram caster sugar (I used unrefined golden caster sugar)

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 sachet (2 grams, about 1 full tsp.) agar agar powder or 3 sheets of gelatin, soaked in a bowl of water until soft, squeezed dry

8 amaretti biscuits



Preheat the oven to 170 C degree. Put the rhubarb in a baking dish or roasting tray, add the orange zest, tip the sugar over, drizzle over the Cointreau,  then toss together.Roast for 15 mins. Stir and roast for another 5 mins or until tender. Leave to cool then blend the rhubarb with its juices to a purée in a food processor. Divide the rhubarb puree between the glasses or jars. Fill the glass about a third of the way up and leave to rest.

Put the cream, milk, caster sugar, vanilla extract and agar agar powder into a pot. Place over medium heat and gently bring to a boil. Simmer for about 2 minutes, stirring regularly to stop the agar agar sticking to the bottom of the saucepan. Allow it to cool slightly, then divide it between the glasses. Be careful when pouring in the cream mixture - try to keep it separate from the rhubarb puree. Cool to room temperature, cover with plastic film and chill for about 4 hours or, preferably, overnight. Before serving decorate with ameretti biscuits .

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