As the weather starts to warm up, my mind immediately goes to summer time, hot temperatures and afternoon treats.

Usually we stock up on Braum's Ice Cream, and that's fine as we love all the different flavors, but it can become a bit expensive at $6 a gallon.

As always, it is cheaper to make at home, but, is it worth it? 

For me, it is.  It is certainly cheaper to make and I can use whatever flavor I choose, which gives me endless possibilities. 




1 can condensed milk
1 can evaporated milk
1 3 oz. box Jello, flavor of your choice (I used Raspberry)


Make the jello as per directions on the box.  In a blender, add the jello mixture, the condensed milk and the evaporated milk.  Beat for 2 or 3 minutes until well incorporated.

Pour into a freezer safe tub, and freeze for 2 hours.

After two hours, pull out of freezer and transfer the mixture into a kitchenaid mixer, or a big bowl that you can use with a handheld mixer.

Mix on medium for 10 minutes.  It will get really well blended and will also increase in volume.

After the 10 minutes, pour back into freezer tub or a bigger one if needed and freeze for 12 hours.

That is it, simple, quick and easy.  It does take a long time to freeze, and it most certainly needs the 12 hours in the freezer, so keep that in mind when making a batch for your family.

Growing up in South Africa, I was able to not only continue to enjoy my Portuguese heritage through the meals we ate at home, but also be privy to the wonderful South African food.  Things like Koeksisters, Vetkoek, Mince Roll, Melktert and the amazing Malva Pudding.

I actually took Home Economics in school and I remember making it as one of our projects.  I'm sure I don't have to tell you that Home Ec. was my favorite subject in school, do I?  Especially when it was cooking day.

Anyway, I thought I had shared this recipe with you all, but after looking through the blog this morning, I noticed that I hadn't, and the last time I actually made the Malva Pudding was back in 2014.  Wow, that needs to be remedied and fast.  I think I will make one this weekend.



Sauce

1½ Cups cream
½ Cup butter, cut into blocks
¾ Cups + 2 teaspoons dark brown sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon Rhodes Apricot Jam (Just use whatever apricot jam you have on hand)

Batter

2 Tablespoons butter
⅓ Cup + 4 teaspoons dark brown sugar
3 Tablespoons Rhodes Apricot Jam
1 egg
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
½ Cup of milk
1 Cup flour
¼ teaspoon salt
4 teaspoon vinegar

Serve with custard, cream or ice cream.


Place the cream, butter, sugar, salt and Apricot Jam in a medium saucepan, stirring continually over a high heat, bring the sauce to the boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer for two minutes.
Remove from the heat and keep warm.


Cream the butter and the sugar together until the butter is pale and soft.  Beat in the Apricot Jam, beat in the egg.  Dissolve the bicarbonate of soda into the milk.

Sift the flour and the salt together and add to the batter, alternating with the milk.  Beat in the vinegar.
Spoon the batter into an ovenproof pudding bowl that has been sprayed with non-stick spray.

Pour half of the sauce over the batter.

Bake the Malva Pudding in an oven preheated to 350º F,  for 40 minutes or until risen and golden.
Remove from the oven and pour over the remaining sauce a little at a time until all the sauce is absorbed by the hot pudding.

Serve hot with custard, cream or ice cream.

Y'all......mug cakes are one of the easiest and most versatile recipes to keep on hand.

You know how sometimes you get a craving for something sweet, but you don't want to have to whip up a whole cake?  This is the perfect way to get rid of that craving, and since the possibilities are endless, you can do chocolate, vanilla, caramel, whatever you want.

This Mint Chocolate Mug Cake came about last week, when I was craving chocolate and had none on hand.  It turned out SO SO good and definitely hit the spot. 




1/4 cup flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup plus 1 tbsp. milk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon mint chocolate chips


In a big mug, add all the ingredients and give them a good whisk to make sure everything is incorporated. 

Add the mint chocolate chips to the middle of the cake batter.  Don't mix, don't stir, just drop and leave it alone.

Microwave on high for 70 seconds. Carefully remove from microwave and enjoy.

This truly is the fluffiest, softest and moistest mug cake, you will ever have.

When I was growing up in Portugal, one of my earliest and most fondest memories, are of the times we would go to the local bakery for a coffee and a cake.  Usually, it would be on Saturday afternoons, and it was called "Lanche", which is not lunch or dinner, but more of a snack in between the two big meals.

The adults would have a coffee and I would eagerly await my glass of chilled coca cola with a slice of lemon and tons of ice, and along with it, one of these Bolas.


Sometimes, we would have them while at the beach, the vendor would come around yelling out "Bolasssss de Berlim", and we would buy one and enjoy it right there on the beach towel, our fingers full of beach sand and our mouths covered in sugar.

There are memories that stay with you forever, and these are certainly some of those.

I had not made these before because I always felt that they would probably take up too much time, or maybe I thought they would be difficult to make.

But recently, I got a huge craving for these and decided that it was now or never, and goodness, am I glad I gave in.

Not only are they easy to make, but even the egg custard creme inside was a pinch to make as well.  If you're wondering what it is, that is good ol Creme Pasteleiro, or Creme Patisserie.

I do hope you give these a try, they are amazingly delicious and your family will love them for sure.


325 grams all purpose flour
25 grams butter
25 grams sugar
Pinch of salt
100 ml water
2 eggs
1 packet dry yeast

Sugar for rolling

In a stand mixer, add all the ingredients, and beat well for 8 minutes.  Check the dough, if it is too dry add a little bit of water a time until you achieve a smooth elastic dough.  If it's too wet, add a little bit of flour at a time.

Pull the dough out and then measure out 50 gram dough balls.  I have a kitchen scale that works with both grams and ounces.

You should get about 12 or so pieces of dough.

Roll each into a ball and place on a lightly greased baking sheet.  Cover with a clean towel and let rise until triple in size.

Fry at a temperature of around 300 F, until gold brown, flipping over to ensure that both sides are nice and golden.

Transfer to a paper lined dish to remove excess oil.  Quickly roll in sugar to coat and set aside.

You can fill these with either jam, vanilla cream or creme patisserie.

To fill, make a 45 degree cut just above the middle of each donut ball,making sure not to slice all the way through, and fill.  You can also cut them straight down the middle as well, again making sure not to cut all the way through.

Enjoy :)

In the world of cakes, I am one who prefers simplicity.

Maybe it's the fact that I grew up used to simple homemade vanilla cakes, those that my grandfather would throw together at midnight, just because the 4 grandchildren said they wanted cake.  He was awesome like that.

He never really measured, he never really used a recipe, he actually didn't cook much but we all knew him for his perfect cakes.  There were no rich sweet gloopy frostings slathered on top, or complicated fillings.  They were homemade, plain, not too sweet, with a dusting of powdered sugar, and enjoyed over a cup of tea.



Those memories have stuck with me my whole life.

I'm not a huge cake fan, I've always been more into savory than sweets, and I really dislike very rich cakes especially with tons of frosting.  They make me feel quite sick, to be honest.  But once in a while I'll get a hankering for a slice of fluffy cake and I have to cave.

And here we are.....


If you like chocolate oranges, you are in for a treat, because this cake tastes just like one of those. My son loves the chocolate oranges and he was quite excited when I handed him a slice of this cake after photographing for the blog.

The recipe comes from one of my very much loved British cookbooks that I've had for many years.



For the cake
1 ½ sticks of butter, softened
¾ cup sugar
3 large eggs
Grated rind of 2 oranges
1 ¾ cups self rising flour, sifted
2 tbsp milk

For the topping
Juice of 2 oranges
½ cup sugar
2 oz. semisweet chocolate

Preheat the oven to 350° F.  Grease and line a 7 in. round pan.  Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat well.  Add the grated orange rind, flour and milk and fold in with a metal spoon.

Turn into the prepared pan, smooth the top and bake for 30-40 minutes until a skewer comes out clean.  Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the pan.

When cool, score the top of the cake lightly with a sharp knife.  Put the orange juice and granulated sugar into a pan and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved.

Bring to the boil and boil for 1-2 minutes.  Pour over the cake.

When all the juice has soaked in, carefully remove the cake from the pan.  Melt the chocolate and drizzle over the top.


You can leave it as is, or do a dusting of powdered sugar like I did.

When I was growing up, in Portugal, we used to go out on Saturday afternoons to a Pastelaria (bakery), and we would have an iced cold coke with lemon slices, and then a cake of some sort.  It depended on what I felt like in the moment, but Pudim Molotof was by far one of my favorites.

It's this amazing egg white pudding that just melts in your mouth with each spoonful, and is drizzled with caramel sauce or in some cases an egg sweet sauce almost like a curd, and toasted almonds.  It is absolutely divine.

I grew up loving it, I grew up wanting to learn how to make it, but was always very intimidated by the process.  It's a bit of a finicky recipe and if you mess with it too much it will go terribly wrong, flop and you end up with a chewy meringue instead of fluffy melt in your mouth egg whites.

About two weeks ago I was craving it and decided that it's now or never.  I sweated and my hands shook but I was determined that I would conquer this dessert.

And conquer it I did.  So pleased and now that I've made it it is no longer intimidating and I plan on making it again for Christmas.

Hint:  Do NOT touch the oven when it's baking, do not open the door at all even if you're curious and tempted to take a peek.



8 egg whites
8 tablespoons of sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the caramel:
1 cup sugar (175 gr)
1/2 cup water  (100 ml)


To make the caramel:  In a saucepan add the water and the sugar, stir until well dissolved.  Cook over high heat until caramelized and a beautiful dark brown.  Do not overcook or it will burn the caramel and be extremely bitter.  Once done, pour into a fluted cake pan and swirl all around to cover the bottom, sides and up the middle of the cake pan.

Preheat the oven to 350° F.   Place a baking tray in the oven with water, I usually fill with water about halfway up the baking pan.

In a standing mixer, add the egg whites and whisk until stiff peaks form, slowly add in the sugar a little at a time, and finally the vanilla extract.  Scoop the egg whites into the caramelized cake pan, smooth the top, then smack the pan on the counter a few times to get rid of any air bubbles.  Place the pan into the middle of the baking pan with the water, you're going to cook the pudding in a Bain Marie.

Bake for about 20 minutes (do NOT open the door at all).  Once the 20 minutes are up, turn the oven off and let it sit in the oven with the door closed for another 30 minutes.  Again do not open the door at all, if you do the pudding will deflate.


Once the time is up, remove from the oven, let it cool down a bit and then remove from pan.  You have to do this really quickly and in one go or you'll end up with caramel sauce all over the place.   Remove the cake pan slowly so the pudding will release without breaking.

You can spoon some of the sauce over the pudding.  Enjoy!!!

Sometimes you crave something sweet, but you don't want to go to a lot of trouble. You just want something quick and easy to throw together.

This is it. Not a lot of fuss, not a lot of ingredients, just delicious goodness that comes together pretty quick. I think it would be perfect for those days when company arrives without notice.




1 cup oil
2 eggs beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar
3 cup flour
3 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1½ cup brown sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
½ cup butter, melted



In a large mixing bowl. combine oil, eggs, vanilla and milk together.  Add in the sugar, flour, baking powder and salt.

In a small bowl combine the brown sugar and cinnamon.

Pour half the batter into a 9x13 pan.   Sprinkle half of the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture, then top with the remaining batter.  Sprinkle the leftover streusel mixture on top.

Drizzle with the melted butter.  (I know it seems like a lot, but it really does make the cake)

Bake, uncovered at 350 for 25-30 minutes.

If I were told to pick just one dessert, whatever it was, to have for the rest of my life, the choice would be simple, Victoria Sponge.  With Strawberry Jam and fresh whipped cream.

I can't begin to tell you how delectable this cake is.  It tastes like a million bucks, but it's actually quite easy to make, when you have the right recipe.

I struggled for years to get it right.  I always ended up with a not so spongy sponge cake, it was flat, it was chewy, it was terrible and nothing like what it's supposed to be.

After trying many recipes, I almost gave up on the idea of being able to produce a delicious Victoria Sponge, that is until I realized that the perfect recipe had been sitting in my pantry all along.

A few years ago I bought 2 cookbooks packed with British recipes, the best of the best the most common cakes, desserts and breads. 

So this afternoon while browsing through one of the books, I came across the recipe and I almost didn't make it for fear it would just be a waste of ingredients again, but I decided to set those fears aside and go for it.  I am SO glad I did.

THIS is it folks, this is the perfect no fail Victoria Sponge. 

But I'm going to stop talking and just share the recipe so you can go ahead and make it for your family too.....or for yourself.  Trust me, I know.  I have to be very careful not to inhale this baby all on my own.




1 and 1/4 cups self rising flour, sifted
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup soft butter or margarine
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
Strawberry Jam
Powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat the oven to 325 F.  Grease and line two 8 in. round sandwich pans.  Put all the ingredients except the jam and powdered sugar in a standing mixer and beat the living daylights out of them.

When the batter is fluffy, very pale and almost mousse-like, divide it between the two pans and smooth out.  Bake for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center, comes out clean.  The cakes should be springy to the touch.

Cool on a wire rack, and when cool sandwich them together with strawberry jam and dust the top.

If you want to use cream as well, use a layer of whipped cream on top of the jam before placing the second cake on top.

Enjoy!!!

Imagine if you will, you have an apple, and you throw it into a doughy brownie like batter, pop it into the oven and out comes the unmistakable taste of Apple Pie.

Yeah, something like that.

I know it's not exactly Fall and some people tend to only gravitate towards these kind of desserts, when it's around that season, but for me, food is about eating and enjoying, any time of the year, so I don't even think twice about making some apple cinnamon concoction in Winter, or Summer, or having ice cream in the cold months.  It is what it is :)

I'm going to start by saying that I'm trying to lose some weight, it's not much, about 5 pounds that I seem to inherited from Thanksgiving and Christmas (thank you good food and wine).  This recipe is everything I shouldn't be eating, but I am not one to diet completely, I can't do that, I always lose weight by controlling portions and not over doing certain things, without having to give up the food I love.

I will probably only have one of these, just enough to curb that sweet tooth craving, but I'm pretty certain my husband and children will enjoy the rest :)






1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 cup apples, diced (a tart baking apple is best like granny smith)
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
2 Tablespoons white sugar
2 Tablespoons cinnamon


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray a 9 x 9 square dish with cooking spray.
In a bowl, mix together butter, brown sugar & 1/2 cup white sugar.
Add egg, vanilla, cinnamon, salt & baking powder, mix well.
Add flour and mix again. Batter will be thick, don't worry!
Add apples and walnuts if desired and mix well. Batter should begin to thin to more brownie like consistency.
Spread mixture evenly into prepared pan.
In a small dish, mix 2 Tablespoons sugar and 2 Tablespoons of cinnamon. Sprinkle on top of apple mixture.
Bake for 45 minutes or until brownie consistency then remove from oven.
Allow to cool. Once cooled, cut into bars and devour immediately by itself or with a large scoop of ice cream!

Hello friends, I'm pretty sure you're surprised to see me here.  I know, I've been an awful food blogger, but so much has been going on in my life the past year and a half, that it's been quite hard to consolidate my personal life, moving across States, dealing with some family health issues and cooking.

Some meals have been whatever is on hand.  Some meals have been based on the cheapest ingredients I could find, some meals have happened thanks to local take outs.  But, with that said, the love that I have for being in the kitchen and cooking, has never diminished in any way, shape or form.  It's just had to take a back seat.

I don't know how things will go from this moment on, but I've been severely lacking some updates here on the old blog, and I've also terribly missed trying new recipes, posting, sharing and all that fun stuff.

So I'm back, and I decided that the way to come back would be by bringing some cake for us to share over a cup of coffee.

There are not many cakes I consider my favorites, I would have to actually state quite firmly, that my cake loves center on Chocolate, Tres Leches, or Carrot.  That's it!!!  I am not saying I won't eat others, but I don't crave them, I don't go out of my way to make them or have them, they're just there.

Right, so Carrot Cake, homemade, with fresh carrots, some mixed nuts thrown in, cinnamon and sweetness......all rolled into a great Fall cake.

If you want to make something for your family, that is not out of a box (and I'm totally not judging, boxed mixes live in my pantry and are often used in a pinch), then give this one a try. 





4 eggs
1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 cups grated carrots
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
4 cups confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped pecans

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan.
In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, white sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Stir in carrots. Fold in pecans. Pour into prepared pan.
Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.
To Make Frosting: In a medium bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, confectioners' sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Stir in chopped pecans. Frost the cooled cake.

Ferrero Rocher.......and cheesecake......all in one delicious mixture.  I mean, what is there NOT to like about that?

Last week it was my sister in law's birthday and she had been eyeing out this cheesecake, so I decided that instead of a birthday cake, I would make her this instead.

It was a hit.  I think it's the perfect combination of chocolate and hazelnuts and cream cheese.  It's not overly rich and sweet which makes it even better, in my opinion.

Super easy, no bake cheesecake.





8 ½ oz of crushed corn flakes

2 ½ oz unsalted butter, melted

4 tbsps cocoa powder

7 oz hazelnut

1.1 lbs cream cheese

1 ½ cup + 4 tbsps cream (25% fat content)

3 oz sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

170g dark chocolate

8 Ferrero Rocher chocolates


Crush the cornflakes with melted butter and cocoa powder. Cover the bottom of a springform pan with the crushed corn flakes and refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Toast the hazelnuts in the oven.

Blend the still warm hazelnuts to form a paste. Add the cream cheese, half of the cream, vanilla extract and sugar and beat until all ingredients are incorporated.

Pour it in the pan and spread with a spatula. Refrigerate until firm.

Melt the chocolate with the rest of the cream.

Cover the cheesecake with chocolate. Decorate with Ferrero Rocher chocolates let it cool for 30 minutes. Serve.

Mincemeat Pies, for me one of the staples of Christmas food.  For others, gag worthy.  Truly, I've met people who think they are absolutely vile to eat.  I however love them and grew up with them in South Africa, thing is, here in the States they are not very well known and you can't find them as easily available as back home, or in England for instance.

Another thing that seems to turn people off these little pies, is that they seem to think that they are very hard to make at home, but I'm here to tell you that it really is not and they taste so much better than store bought.

You can also make the filling at home, though I usually buy the big jar.  I'm pretty certain that homemade is way tastier too but I haven't had the chance to try that yet, maybe next year.

Anyway, I got the recipe for the pastry from one of my favorite Youtubers, Rebecca from Percy and Grace.  This is such a quick and easy recipe and the result is a buttery tasty flaky dough, perfect for these pies.

The recipe IS in grams and I'll see if I can convert it for you all, but I would highly suggest getting a kitchen scale that uses both grams/kilos and ounces/pounds, they are a life saver, really.





280g plain flour (about 2 and a 1/3 cups)
195g softened unsalted butter (about 3/4 cups)
95g caster sugar (white sugar)
2 medium eggs
1 large jar of mincemeat
Icing sugar for dusting (powdered sugar)



In a bowl, add the flour and the butter, mix with your fingertips or a knife to get a crumbly mixture. Add in one egg and mix well, dump onto a floured surface and fold the pasty dough over itself a few times, knead a little until it comes together well, try not to overmix though.

Wrap in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 200 Celsius/425 Farenheit.

Roll out your dough to about 3mm about an 1/8th of an inch. Using a big cookie cutter, cut out 12 circles. Butter a muffin pan, and pop one circle in each, then press and mold to size. Drop in 1 and a half tablespoons of mincemeat filling.

Beat the other egg, and using a pastry brush, brush the edges of the pies. Roll out the dough again, cut out another 12 circles, top each pie with a circle, pressing down to seal. Glaze with the rest of the egg, sprinkle on some sugar and make a cut in the middle of each pie.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until nice and golden. Let cool and then pop them out of the pan and dust with icing sugar.

To store, place them in an airtight container, they will keep for about a week, but you can also freeze them for up to 3 months.

Enjoy!!!