TWD: Chipster-Topped Brownie Disaster

Beth of Supplicious decided on Chipster-Topped Brownie for this weeks recipe. I wish I could tell you all that I loved this recipe, or even that I didn't really like it but unfortunately I haven't even had a nibble to taste the brownies.

I actually made this recipe one and a half weeks ago, I was invited for dinner over at a friends house and told her I'd bring dessert. The brownie batter looked quite bubbly.

The cookie dough looked good and tasted delicious!!

When I tried to divide the cookie batter over the brownie batter the cookie batter immediately sunk to the bottom.....

However I continued and popped the brownie/cookie batter into the oven, baked it for 55 minutes and took the brownie out of the oven when my cake tester came out with only faint streaks of chocolate, as indicated by Dorie. The top was dry, a bit hard and had a huge crack.

Something must have gone wrong as I found out it was still way too liquid inside when I started to cut into the brownies after cooling them during the day. A total disaster for me, the first I might add since I started baking. I couldn’t even salvage the smallest piece…

So no yummy brownies for my friends at dinner, instead I made a quick stop at the supermarket and bought some a tub of Ben & Jerry's Cookie Dough.

Check out if my fellow TWD-ers had more succes with the Chipster-Topped Brownie here!

Strawberry Coconut Pudding for for Taste & Create XVIV

And here's my second entry for this month's Taste & Create: I had some leftover light coconut milk from the Thai-style Chicken for CEiMB, so I decided to go ahead and try Kit's Piña Colada Pudding. Unfortunately I couldn't find the Knorr Piña Colada jelly, but did find some strawberry jelly and gave that a go. I changed the quantities a bit as I only had about 300 ml of coconut milk left, so I had 300 ml coconut milk and .

When you look at Kit's post you'll see that there is a thin layer of pineapple jelly on top and a thick, creamy coconut pudding underneath when the dessert is unmolded. Unfortunately it didn't quite work out for me like that: my pudding is one big pink pudding, no thin layer of jelly.... I wonder what went wrong...... The pudding also wasn't as thick as my jelly normally is, however it did taste amazing!! Yum!! I'll definetely make it again, but next time I'll use the proper quantities!

Strawberry Coconut Pudding

1 can of coconut milk

1 box of Strawberry jelly

boiling water

Follow the instructions printed on the box but substitute coconut milk for the boiling water.

The recipe calls for 500 ml of water, use 100 ml of boiling water to soften the jelly and then added the can of coconut.

Sauteed Peppers with Garlic and Thyme for Taste & Create XVIV

For this month's Taste & Create I was paired with KC from Kit's Chow. It didn't take me very long to find a couple of recipes that I wanted to try. As I had just brought home a huge bag of bell peppers and I absolutely love garlic my first pick was easy: Sauteed Bell Peppers with Garlic and Thyme.

This recipe was super easy and real tasty too! I absolutely loved the combination of the sauteed garlic and bell peppers with the balsamic vinegar!! Apparently I can eat loads of these, simply because a) Garlic is good for the cardiovascular system, offers protection against many cancers, offers protection against asbestos and promotes weight control and b) Bell Peppers offer protection against free radicals, reduce risk of cardiovascular disease, offer protection against rheumatoid arthritis, and appear to have a protective effect against cataracts.

Sauteed Peppers with Garlic and Thyme

6 Bell peppers
10 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
a couple of tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
a pinch of thyme
Olive oil

Turn the fire on medium and heat the pan. Add a bit of olive oil to sauté the garlic.
Add the peppers and sauté them until they are coated with oil and become limp.Stir the peppers and sprinkle some thyme over them. Turn the heat to low and cover the pan. Let the peppers cook for about ten minutes.Pour some balsamic vinegar over the peppers and toss to mix.Dish up. Serve at room temperature..

CEiMB: Thai Style Chicken with Coconut Curry Broth, Barefoot Bloggers: Ina's Lemon Cake

This week is the first time I'm actually writing two recipes in one post. So I'm going to start with CEiMB for today's main course and end with the Barefoot Bloggers for today's dessert....

CEiMB: Thai Style Halibut Coconut Curry Broth

This weeks recipe for Craving Ellie in My Belly was picked by The Not So Skinny Kitchen, she decided on Thai Style Halibut Coconut Curry Broth. I'm not a huge fan of fish and I wanted to empty my freezer for my upcoming vacation, so I decided to use two chicken breasts. I also used red onion instead of shallots 'cause I was totallly out of shallots!

I cooked the chicken for about 20 minutes, just to make sure it was cooked all the way. I halved the recipe, but used the entire two teaspoons of red curry paste. I left one chicken breast whole and cut the other one into small pieces. Boy, this dish sure ticked all my boxes: curry, cilantro, lime and chicken: absolutely delicious!!!

One serving of this lovely dish works out to only 6 WW points!To my humble opinion this was a great pick, check our what my fellow Ellie-istas thought here.

Barefoot Bloggers: Ina's Lemon Cakes

McKenzie of Kenzie's Kitchen got to pick this months Bonus Recipe for Barefoot Bloggers, her pick was Ina's Lemon Cake. Oh my, this tastes amazing: like heaven. I didn't think it would be possible with not even the tiniest bit of chocolate in sight, but it's really good!!

In this recipe Ina combines the perfect pound cake with a lovely tart lemon syrup and a delicious lemon glaze. The cake is nice and moist, sweet but also sour. To sum it up: the perfect summer cake!

The recipe actually makes two cakes, but since I'm planning on doing a lot of baking the next couple of days I halved the recipe and ended up with one perfect lemon cake.

My one lemon cake made 14 slices, that works out to 5 WW Points per slice.

Go check out what the other Barefoot Bloggers thought of Ina's Lemon Cake here!

Garlic Noodles

A while ago I saw on Facebook that Shelby of The Life and Loves of Grumpy's Honeybunch was preparing Garlic Noodles. As I'm a huge lover of both garlic and noodles I bookmarked the recipe instantly.

Yesterday I decided to give this recipe a go and oh my god, did I enjoy it!! I was a bit apprehensive about the oyster sauce, but barely noticed it. Iloved the combination of the garlic and brown sugar!!!



Garlic Noodles
Adapted from: The Life and Loves of Grumpy's Honeybunch

7 ounces dry Chinese noodles or spaghetti
1 large red onion, minced
2 tablespoons salted butter
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce

Boil a large pot of water and cook the noodles according to package instructions.
Drain the noodles and wipe the pot clean. Place the noodles back in the pot and set aside.

In fry pan bring butter to a sizzle and add shallots and garlic. Stir fry for 1 to 2 minutes being careful not to burn the garlic.

In a small mixing bowl add the brown sugar, soy sauce, and oyster sauce and stir well to mix. Add to the garlic and onions and mix well. Add the noodles and toss well evenly distribute the sauce on the noodles.

TWD: Fresh Mango Bread Muffins with Pecans and Coconut

After missing out on all last weeks challenges I really looked forward to participating in this weeks TWD as Kelly of Baking with the Boys picked Mango Bread for us to try.



I halved the recipe, used a bit more cinnamon and a bit less ginger. I soaked the raisins in apfelkorn for about 10 minutes and added 1/3 cup of chopped pecans and 2 tablespoons of shredded coconut to the batter to get a more pronounced tropical taste. Then I divided the mixture over some muffin liners and baked them for about 20 minutes. Next time they need a bit less time in the oven as they had a bit too much of a tan on them in my opinion....



This time I forgot to add the lime zest and am afraid that at one point I forgot to half the ingredients: I can clearly remember measuring the whole 1/2 cup of packed light brown sugar and adding it to the rest of the dry ingredients, so I guess my muffins will be a tad sweet this week. I'll get back on the flavour later today after I sampled a muffin! Update: these were absolutely perfect: nice and moist on the inside with an occasional piece of pecan, yum!!

The coconut however was hardly detectable.... Maybe I'll add some more next time!

My halved recipe actually made 24 muffins, it always amazes me when I get way more muffins from one recipe than Americans. I'm not exactly sure what this means... MaybeI'm frugal or American muffins are simply enormous!! Anyhow, one of my muffins contains 3 WW points.

Go check out what my fellow TWD-ers thought of the Mango Bread here!
Great news by the way for those of you who are not members of TWD but want to be: the group's accepting new members!!! If you're interested, go check out the rules here.

Risotto with Spinach, Roasted Peppers and Goat Cheese

After making the Garden Risotto for last weeks Craving Ellie in my Belly I really wanted to make some more risotto, so I searched for some great recipes over at Tastespotting. I loved the idea of both Jamie Olivers Spinach and Goat Cheese Risotto of Cheese Plus Everything and the Roasted Bell Pepper Risotto with Chorizo Cubes by Delicious Days. I couldn't pick one so I decided to simply combine the ingredients of the two of them Ellie-style.

To start with I roasted the bell peppers the evening before I made the risotto, this was actually quite easy. From now one when I need roasted bell peppers for a recipe I won't buy them but make them myself! Here's what to do (adapted from Delicious Days):

• Preheat the oven at 225 degrees.
• Wash the bell peppers.
• Cut off top and bottom of the bell peppers.
• Remove the seeds and inner ribs.
• Cut the bell peppers into quarters.
• Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
• Place the quartered bell peppers on the parchment paper.
• Roast for 15 to 20 minutes or untill the bell peppers are evenly blistered and charred.
• Put the bell pepper quarters into a ziploc bag while still hot.
• Squeeze out residual air, then seal and chill the grilled bell peppers in the fridge over night.
• When you're ready to make the risotto, remove the bell peppers from the ziploc bag.
• Remove the charred skins.
• Cut the bell peppers into thin strips.

I was a bit scared that the taste of the goat cheese would overpower the other flavours in the rissotto, however I found it to be really subtle. Next time I'll probably double the amount of roasted bell pepper.

Risotto with Spinach, Roasted Peppers and Goat Cheese

1 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium red onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 cup Arborio rice
1/4 cup dry white wine
3/8 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
700 ml low-sodium chicken broth
200 grams spinach leaves
2 roasted bell peppers, sliced
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan, I used Pecorino Romano
100 grams goat cheese

Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan over moderately low heat and cook the onion, stirring occasionally, until soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring occasionally for about 1 minute. Add the rice and cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute.

Add wine and simmer, stirring constantly, until absorbed, about 1 minute. Add 3/4 cup of the hot broth, the salt and a few grinds of fresh pepper and simmer, stirring constantly, until broth is absorbed. Continue simmering and adding hot broth, about 3/4 cup at a time, stirring constantly and allowing the broth to be absorbed before adding more, until rice is almost tender and creamy-looking, about 18 minutes.

Add the spinach and cook until the spinach is wilted. Add the roasted bell peppers and cook just until the vegetables are hot. Stir in the Parmesan, then stirr in the goat cheese and more broth if the risotto seems too thick. Serve in soup plates. Enjoy!

Tomorrow I'll post about todays Barefoot Bloggers Tuna Salad!

No TWD this week, maybe CEiMB later today

Sorry guys, no TWD or this week. So no Tartest Lemon Tart (picked by Barb of Babette Feasts)... I haven't gotten around to the Jerk Chicken for CEiMB (picked by Jen of Notes from the Table)yet, I hope to get home a bit earlier tonight and make it but there is a very big possibility that I won't or that I'll be too tired to even look at the kitschen: this week has been so hectic and I've hardly been home enough to eat, shower and sleep..... Hopefully I'll get a bit more me-time as of Friday!

Great giveaway over at Fabulous Finds: Last chance to enter today!!

They are giving away the most amazing cute shoes over at Fabulous Finds, go check it out!

The giveaway ends today so hurry up!!!

CEiMB: Garden Risotto and Confession Time...

I have a confession to make: I've never made risotto. For some reason I've always been quite intimidated about it. But there's a first time for everything and thanks to Jessica of A Singleton in the Kitchen yesterday I finally made risotto for the first time in my life!

I was amazed by how easy it was put together, although the risotto did need to be stirred a lot..... My entire family loved this dish: I cooked this at my parents house, my mom couldn't eat it as she's not allowed to eat rice at the moment, so I brought leftovers to my brother and put one portion in the freezer.

From now on I'll be making more risotto!! I did make three small changes in the recipe: I used Pecorino Romano instead of Parmesan, red onion instead of regular onion and I added a bit more spinach and peas to the risotto 'cause I love veggies! My risotto was paired with köfte from the Turkish butcher. What a nice combination: the creamy softness of the risotto toned down the spicyness of the köfte. Jessica, thank you so much for picking this recipe and showing me that risotto is made easy-peasy: you've made my entire family happy!!

Check out what my fellow Elie-istas thoughts on the Garden Risotto were here, the recipe can be found here at Jessica's blog or here at Foodnetwork. Up next are:

• May 14th: Jerk Chicken with Cool Pineapple Salsa, hosted by Jen B. of Notes from the Table
• May 21st: Thai Style Halibut with Coconut Curry Broth, hosted by The Not So Skinny Kitchen
• May 28th: Crispy Fish Fingers, hosted by Anne of Rainforest Recipes

Brown Sugar Apple and Cinnamon Tiramisu and my new signature

Guess what this is........

It's cinnamon-mascarponecream!!! Yum! There was some mascarpone leftover in the fridge from this weeks TWD, the Tiramisu Cake that I turned into cupcakes. I had no idea what to do with them. Then I received a phone call from Susann, one of my German friends. She is in Belgium today and tomorrow for business and wanted to come by tomorrow evening, what a nice surprise!! We haven't seen each other since August 2007, so I'm really looking forward to het visit, even if it's only for one evening!

Ofcourse now I had to turn the mascarpone into a tiramisu, but I didn't feel like making the regular tiramisu after making all those cupcakes. Since the supermarket was already closed for the day I went on to check my pantry and found some double cream, cinnamon, two apples and cinnamon liquor.



Brown Sugar Apple and Cinnamon Tiramisu
4 servings
2 apples (I used one Golden Delicious and one Pink Lady)
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp brown sugar (packed)
200 gram mascarpone
1 1/2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
200 gram double cream (I used light, that's what I had in the fridge)
1/2 tbsp sugar
10 lady fingers, broken into thirds
cinnamon liquor

Peel the apples, remove the core and cut into thin slices, about 8 slices per 1/4 apple. Heat the butter in a pan and add the apples. Cook untill the apples are soft and then add the sugar, mix well. Cook for another couple of minutes.

Cream the mascarpone in a bowl, add 1 1/2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and mix this really good. In another bowl whisk the double cream wiht 1/2 tablespoon of sugar untill the cream is stiff. Carefully fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone.

Layer the tiramisu, I used individual glass cups, as followed: place 3 thirds of ladyfingers in the cup, drizzle about 1 teaspoon of cinnamonliquor on it, top with the soft apples and then cover with the mascarponecream. Repeat this one more time and put into the fridge to meld, preferably overnight.

When ready to serve: dust some cinnamon on top of the tiramisu. Enjoy!!


My goal today was to figure out how to put a personalized signature under each post. It was relatively easy: quite a lot less dificult than I though it would be! My next step is to add tabs to the header of my blog....