Poppy seed cake with chocolate ganache

This is my husband’s favorite cake that his mom made for his birthday every year and even his grandmother made it. When I talked to my husband’s cousins, they all raved about this cake, the Poppy seed cake … No surprise they all think it is the best cake on Earth … it is moist, crunchy and delicious …

The recipe has three parts: the dough, the vanilla creme (creme patisserie) and the chocolate ganache. Please read the following notes on how to make the cake.

This cake takes some time and patience to make but is not too difficult. Make sure all ingredients are at room temperature, it should be around 65-70 F. The recipe comes from the New York Times Cookbook,

The dough requires sifted flour. Sifting flour is an easy process, cooks generally use a flour sifter. If you don’t have one no worries, you can use a strainer or a wire whisk. The idea is to get air into the flour. Then once sifted, measure out the 2 cups, using a knife to level the top. Return the extra flour into the flour bin.

You need two 9″ round cake forms. For a long time I only had one cake form and I was fine. I just had to wait until the form cooled off after baking the first batch. I ended up buying a second one a few years ago. It is nice to have two but you can get by with only one.

The vanilla creme is pretty straight forward. I used a double boiler to cook the ingredients. If you don’t have a double boiler, you can use a metal bowl that fits on the top of the bottom pot securely but does not touch the bottom of the pot.

The chocolate ganache is what brings all the ingredients, the cake together. It should be made a little softer than generally made for cakes … should stick to the surface but not become hard. Also, the sweetness of the chocolate is a personal preference. I like the semi sweet chocolate personally but you can use whatever you prefer, of course.

RECIPE

Makes about 8 slices

Ingredients

Dough

2/3 cup whole poppy seed
1 cup milk
11 Tbsp (5.4 oz) butter, soft
1/2 -1 1/2 cups of sugar (to taste)
2 cup unbleached wheat flour, CUT/SIFTED
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 egg whites (save 3 yolks for creme)

Vanilla cream

1 cup milk
3 egg yolks (saved from earlier step)
3 Tbsp sugar
3 Tbsp flour
1 tsp vanilla extract

Chocolate ganache

6 oz baking chocolate, bitter sweet
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 – 1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preparation

Please check notes above for more info on how to make this cake.

Making the dough

Preheat oven to 350 F.
While still cold, separate the eggs. Set aside 1 egg yolk so you get 4 egg whites and 3 egg yolks in separate bowls.
Have all ingredients at room temperature (70 F).
Soak the poppy seed in 1 cup milk overnight but at least for 2 hours.
Cream butter with sugar and add the vanilla extract. Set aside.
Cut and sift flour. Please note the amount of flour used is for cut and sifted amount. So measure out 2 cups of flour and sift. Take the measuring cup again and measure out 2 cups of the sifted flour and using a knife level the top. Return remaining four to its bin.
Sift in baking powder and salt.
Mix the butter/sugar mixture with the flour. Cut and mix the butter mixture until you have small clums of butter coated in the flour. Make sure to scrape from the bottom of the bowl to catch any hidden pockets of flour. Do not over-mix. I do the mixing by hand but you can used a food processor on a low setting.
Add the poppy seed mixture (from earlier), mix gently.
Beat the 4 egg whites on high speed until stiff.
Gently fold egg whites into the dough.
Grease and lightly flour cake forms or just simply use parchment paper.
Separate dough between two cake forms.
Try to make sure the top stays flat.
Bake for 20 – 30 minutes or until an inserted tooth pick comes out clean.
Let the cake forms cool completely before removing the cakes.

Making the vanilla cream

In a double boiler, bring milk to a gentle boil over medium heat.
Meanwhile, whisk the three egg yolks, sugar together. Add flour, mix. Add warm milk gradually and mix.
Pour mixture back into the double boiler pot and cook on high medium heat. Whisk continuously for about 5 minutes or until mixture thickens.
Take off heat and add vanilla.
Let it cool.

Making the chocolate ganache

You can use a clean double boiler here again. Melt the chocolate and add the heavy cream, vanilla extract and sugar. Mix.

Assembling the cake

Place the vanilla creme in-between the two cake layers. (Use the ‘prettier’ cake for your top layer. You can also flip one of the cakes over and use the bottom for the top so you get a more even appearance). Spread chocolate ganache on the top. This ganache will be slightly liquidy when placed on the cake but will harden in the refrigerator.
Decorate the top to your liking.
Refrigerate the assembled cake for at least 1 hour before serving.
Store in the refrigerator.

enjoy!

Photos and text by twincitiesherbs.com.

Source: Joy of Cooking, 1978 edition

Whole wheat sweet potato muffins

These sweet potato muffins are lovely autumn muffins! They are packed with nutritious ingredients of the season and get their special flavor from the spices: cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, ginger, mace and cloves. enjoy!

RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

2 cups / 240 gr whole wheat flour (white flour is fine too)
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice ( China cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, ginger, mace and cloves)
1 stick (8 Tbsp) of butter (115 g) melted
1 cup of sweet potato, mashed (1 medium sized sweet potato)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1 cup raisins or dried cranberries
3/4 cup nuts, coarsely chopped (optional)
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

PREPERATION

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Bake the sweet potatoes for about 1 hour. When done, mash them with a potato masher.

Sift flour, pumpkin spice, baking powder, baking soda, salt in a mixing bowl. Add the nuts, raisins or cranberries. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar. Add the lightly beaten eggs, vanilla, butter milk and the sweet potatoes. Mix.

Quickly mix everything together. Do not over-mix. You can sprinkle sugar and nuts on the top if you wish.

Lightly oil a muffin tin. Evenly distribute the dough between the 12 muffin cups.

Bake for 25-30 minutes. The muffins are ready when a tooth pick inserted comes out clean.

Let cool before serving.

enjoy!

Recipe, photos and text by twincitiesherbs.com.

Pan de Muerto (Day of the dead bread)

This is a soft buttery sweet bread to help us bring back the sweet memories of the people who can not be with us anymore. Baking this bread helps me honor my mom’s spirit. It feels like she is with me while I am baking the bread. What a neat way to honor her and her love for cooking. I am so glad I was introduced to this custom.

Pan de Muerto is traditionally made in Mexico for the Day of the Dead celebration. It is flavored with orange zest or anise seeds and brushed with a glaze and sprinkled with sugar. The preparation depends on the region as everybody has their own recipe. This recipe is from the Mexico City region.

Día de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead is a celebration in Mexico between October 31st and November 2nd. During this time period, Mexicans remember their ancestors who have past away. It is not a scary, spooky time but rather a joyous, spiritual time. People go to the cemeteries, to the altars of their deceased friends and relatives. They also lavishly decorate an altar in their homes with candles and memories.

This celebration’s roots are in the Pre-hispanic times. Native Americans celebrated this time period because they believe that our ancestors’ spirits return to Earth to be with us during this time period. After the Catholic Spaniards arrived, they had combined this tradition with their own celebration, All Saint Day and this unique holiday that the Mexicans celebrate today was born.

As I have mentioned before, it is a festive, spiritual celebration. There is music, candles and special foods served. One food they serve is a special bread called Pan de Muerto. It is given as an offering to the ancestors’ spirits and has special meanings. While the exact meaning is not known, it is believed that the crosses on the top represent the bones. The circular shape in the middle could be a tear dropp, or a skull or the heart.

Traditionally, they always use oranges to make the bread and anise seeds are sometimes added too. I don’t have oranges so I ended up using almond extract and anise seeds. I believe they worked nicely here and the anise seeds are used traditionally anyway.

If you make this recipe, please share your experience in the comment section, I’d love to hear from you!

My recipe is from the following source.

For another Halloween treat for this special time please try my Barmbrack bread recipe from last year (source).

RECIPE

Ingredients

4 oz butter (110 g) at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar + more for the top
1/2 tsp salt
5 cups flour + more for kneading the dough
4 eggs + 1 egg for the top (room temperature)
1 1/4 cups warm milk
2 pkg dried yeast or 5 tsp
zest and juice of 2 oranges
2 Tbsp vanilla or almond extract
1 Tbsp anise seeds

Preparation

For clarification, please view the video provided at the end of the blog.

–Makes 2 loaves

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Prepare the yeast. Add the yeast to warm milk (104 – 108 F). Cover. It is ready when the yeast comes up. Set aside.

Cream the butter, sugar, salt and 1/2 cup of flour. Set aside.

Mix eggs, 1/2 cup flour, orange zest and juice or almond extract and anise seeds.

Combine all above ingredients plus 1/2 cup of flour.

Slowly add the rest of the flour 1 cup at a time and mix until all ingredients are incorporated.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 minutes.

Cover it with a clean, damp cloth and let it rise for 90 minutes.

Separate about 1/4 of the dough and use it to make the decorations for the top. These are the bone shapes to drape across the top and the balls to place them in the middle.

Divide the rest of the dough into two ball shaped loaves and place them on lightly oiled cookie sheets.

Making the decoration. I divide this 1/4 piece from the original dough into 6 parts, four for the bone shaped decorations and two for the middle part.

For the bone shaped decoration, shape the dough into a flat-bottomed semi-sphere. Position them on top of the bread and press lightly down to make sure they adhere. Put the little balls in the middle to connect the bones.

Let the assembled loaves rest for 1 hour.

Spread lightly beaten eggs and sugar on the surface of the loaves.

Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes.

When cool, glaze the loaves with melted butter and sprinkle on some sugar.

enjoy!

Source

https://www.thespruceeats.com/pan-de-muerto-2343007

Please feel free to watch this Mexican women how to make the bread.

Pan de Muerto Recipe

Mini apple turnovers (almás mosoly)

Here is my new favorite dessert! These tasty turnovers will satisfy your autumn sweet tooth any time. They are simple, puffy and delicious. No need to buy puff pastry from the store, you can make the buttery, flaky puff pastry with the three simple main ingredients: butter, cream cheese, and flour. There is something about simple, delicious dishes that are just that … simple and delicious… and this dish is surely just that… My recipe came from this blog (source).

RECIPE

Ingredients

1-2 apples, firmer baking apples (I used Cortland)
1 pkg cream cheese (220 gr)
2 sticks of butter (220 gr)
1 1/3 cups flour (220 gr)
pinch of salt
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tsp apple pie spice or cinnamon
1/2 cup powdered sugar
handful of chopped nuts

Directions

Have all ingredients at room temperature.

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Combine the cream cheese, butter, flour, salt and sugar. Put the dough in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Take the cold dough out of the fridge, cut it in half. Put one half back in the fridge to keep it cold while you are working with the other half of the dough..

Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin about 2-3 mm thick. Cut out round shapes with a cookie cutter. My cookie cutter is 2 1/2 inches in diameter but you can use whatever size you have. Cut the circles big enough so they can fit the apple slices or vice versa cut your apples so they can fit in the circle.

Place the apple slices on half of the cut out shapes and fold the other half of the circle over the apple slice. Put the prepared pieces on the pre-oiled cookie sheet.

Bake for 18 – 20 minutes in the preheated oven.

Repeat with the other half of the dough.

Make the sugar coating. Add 1 tsp apple pie spice or cinnamon to the 1/2 cup of powdered sugar. Put the apple turnovers into a bigger bowl and toss them with the sugar/cinnamon mixture. I did this when they were still warm. I found that when done while hot, the sugar sticks better but please feel free to experiment.

Sprinkle with the chopped nuts.

Now ready to serve.

enjoy!

Photo and text by twincitiesherbs.com.

Source of the recipe

https://wordpress.com/read/blogs/106421768/posts/6271

Plum and berry cobbler

Have you ever had to cut corners in the kitchen and later, did you realize that you had actually created something new and amazing? This must have happened to the early settlers of America who came from the Old World. They had their recipes to make the English pie but did not have all the tools to make them … and came up with a brand new dish called cobbler.

Cobbler is just as good as pie is IMO and is much easier to make. Seasonal fruits are used in cobblers as well but not sure where the name came from. It might be referring to the wooden spoons they used or the cobbler who mends shoes like the dough is mended on top of the fruits or perhaps it was the village cobbler’s favorite dessert. It doesn’t matter what the name stands for but this dessert is a crowd pleaser for sure.

This is an ‘end of the summer’ cobbler recipe. It is made with plums along some berries and the savory spices that are nice for this time of year. Of course, I used plums because they are available right now. I also added nutmeg, cinnamon, orange peel and ginger to add a little flavor and they suit the plums nicely as well. The juicy fruits are covered with the perfectly crumpling, soft topping. Oh and it is begging for a bit of vanilla ice cream. Enjoy!

RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

My recipe was inspired by the Joy of Cooking cookbook.

Have all the ingredients at room temperature except the butter.

For the fruits

1 lb of plums, pitted and cut 1′ or smaller chunks
1 lb of berries – I used blackberries and raspberries
½ cup of sugar or more if your fruits are not sweet enough. Only use more if your berries are not sweet. 1/2 cup is plenty otherwise, trust me!
pinch of salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp dried ginger (cut and sifted) or 1 tsp fresh
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1 Tbsp orange peel
2 Tbsp of flour or 1 Tbsp of corn starch

The dough

1 1/3 cup of all purpose white flour
1 tsp of baking powder
pinch of salt
2 Tbsp of sugar
5 Tbsp of cold unsalted butter
2/3 cup of cream or 1/2 cup of milk (honestly milk is fine too)
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1 lightly beaten egg for the top
extra sugar for the top
vanilla ice cream for serving

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Making the fruit filling

Have ready an oven proof baking dish that is about 2 quarts large in volume and 2 inches deep (ex 11 x 4 x 2 inch).
Take fruits out of the freezer if they are frozen and let them defrost. Wash plums and cut them into 1/2-1 inch long pieces. Place the plums and the berries in the dish. They need to be at room temperature before you can put the cobbler into the oven.
Add pinch of salt, cornstarch or flour, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon and sugar and mix. Set aside and wait for at least 30 minutes.

Making the dough

In a large bowl, combine the flour with the baking powder, pinch of salt and sugar.
Add the cold butter and mix. This is such a satisfying experience for me to do by hand. If you prefer, you can use your food processor for this step.
Add the cream or milk stirring with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together. Gently need the dough in the bowl for 5 minutes if needed, turning and pressing any loose pieces into the dough. Dust the top and the bottom of the dough. Let the dough sit for 1 hour if you have time.

Preparing the cobbler

Now we will make a patchwork. Divide the dough into 8-10 parts and flatten each piece between your two hands about 1/4 inch thick. Place each piece on top of the fruit mix. Keep doing this until you have used up all the dough and the fruits are covered.
(The dough should be workable but not sticky. If the dough becomes too sticky and warm, put it into the fridge for about 10 minutes to become the proper consistency. This can happen easily in the summer when it is warm outside.
Lightly brush the top of the dough with the eggs and sprinkle with a little sugar.

Baking the cobbler

Put the cobbler in the pre-heated oven and bake for about 40-50 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the berries are bubbling. Don’t overbake, make sure the fruits stay ‘liquidy’.
Let stand at room temperature for at least 15 minutes before serving.

Serving the cobbler

You can serve the cobbler at room temperature with vanilla ice cream if you wish.

enjoy!

Source

Irma S. Rombauer: Joy of Cooking

Text and photos by Twincitiesherbs.

Fluffy Red Currant Meringue Cake

This delicious German dessert quickly became a favorite in my family. The tasty base is topped with the delicate meringue mixed with the red currants. The tangy red currants are available right now and are bursting with flavor. Of course, you can add as much sugar as you like or as little as you like … that is the beauty of making your own cake. Please feel free to experiment.

RECIPE

Ingredients

base

2 cup (30 dkg) flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 sticks (25 dkg) butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4- 1 cup sugar (I used 1/4 cup)
5 egg yolks
1/4 cup almond flour, optional
pinch of salt

topping

2 1/4 cup red currants without stems
5 egg whites
1/4-1 cup sugar ( I used 1/2 cup)
handful of breadcrumbs
pinch of salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter a 9″ round dish (2 1/2″ deep). Sprinkle some flour on the bottom.
In a medium sized bowl, sift baking soda into the flour. Cut the butter into the flour.
Add the yolks one by one. Mix well.
Add the sugar and vanilla extract, almond flour, mix.
Spread the dough evenly on the bottom of the pre- buttered form.
Let it rest for 1 hour if you can.
Bake for 30 minutes.
Turn the oven down to 340 F.
Beat the egg whites until hard. Mix in the sugar and salt. Gently mix in the currants and the breadcrumbs.
Pour on top of the baked cake base.
Bake for 15 more minutes at 340 F and then turn heat down to 300 F. Bake for 15 more minutes.
Let the cake sit for a few hours before serving.
Decorate the top with fresh currants, optional.
Serve at room temperature maybe with a little vanilla ice cream.

enjoy!

Text, recipe and photo by twincitiesherbs.com.

Summer sugar cookies with lemon icing

These cookies are made to honor the Summer Solstice. Summer Solstice is the celebration of the longest day of the year, really the celebration of the Sun. It is a ceremony done especially in places that have long days of darkness and cold in the winter. It is surely a huge event in the Northern European countries but you can enjoy it in your own backyard wherever you live. Gather some edible flowers and make these delicious cookies to celebrate this beautiful time of the year!

The recipe is from the following source.

IMPORTANT! You can use any flowers that your heart desires just make sure they are edible. Many of the flowers sold in stores are cultivated versions of wild plants and might not be suitable for eating but even in the wild, not every plant is edible. Of course, do not pick from areas that have been sprayed. If you don’t have edible flowers, no worries. You can still make the cookies with the icing and just use the flowers for decorations on the side.

Having said this, here is a list of flowers could be used to make this recipe: calendula, chamomile, clovers, native echinacea, wild iris, wild daisies, dandelions, lavender, wild roses, St John’s wort, rosemary, thyme, sage. I ended up using flowers that are growing in my garden right now. These were petals of chamomile, calendula, clovers, lavender and leaves of rosemary.

These are tasty sugar cookies drizzled with icing … the icing will harden in about an hour or so after you put it on. Also, the icing recipe uses some milk. I don’t think the milk is a big issue … you can leave the cookies out for a couple of hours but they should be refrigerated otherwise for storage. Of course, you can make these cookies without the flowers for a fun summer dessert, too.

RECIPE

Ingredients

Cookies:

1 & 3/4 cups all purpose flour, cut and sifted
12 Tbsp softened butter at room temperature
¼ cup honey
¼ cup brown or cane sugar
1-3 teaspoon minced organic thyme
1-3 teaspoon minced organic lavender buds
1-3 teaspoon minced organic rosemary
1-3 teaspoon minced organic sage
a few crushed cardamom seeds
pinch of salt
edible flowers (please see note above)

Icing:

3 teaspoons milk
1 cup powdered sugar
grated rind of 1 lemon.
For coloring, I used store-bought natural food yellow dye or you can use turmeric or St John’s wort tincture too.
Combine your milk and icing sugar. Slowly add in your coloring and mix until you find the desired color/consistency.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 300 F. Grease your cooking sheet.
Cream sugar and butter. Add flour and herbs (yur choice of lavender, thyme, sage, rosemary, crushed cardamom seeds) and mix until creamy. I did it by hand easily but you can use a food processor.
Slowly drizzle in honey while beating until mixture pulls together. I did this part by hand, it was very easy. The dough should make a ball.
Divide into four smaller balls and chill for an hour or so.
Roll out on a floured surface and cut into round shapes. Add flour as needed.
Bake for 10-15 minutes. I baked the cookies for 12 minutes until the bottoms were nice and golden brown. The cookies will harden after you take them out.
Let cool.
Spread a small amount of the icing (recipe above) on the top of the cookies evenly. Do them in batches of 10 as the icing can harden.
Decorate using the flowers and herbs of the sun: Please note above on how to choose flowers.
Refrigerate for storing.

enjoy!

Source

https://gathervictoria.com/tag/summer-solstice-magic/

Text and photos by twincitiesherbs.com.

Cupcakes with candied violets

The beautiful violets are springing up everywhere in the Midwest, in the meadows, on the forest floor and if you are lucky in your back yard. They are not just beautiful but are edible too. Violets are a great source of food for butterflies and people as well. There are so many things you can make with these flowers. Today, I will make crystallized violets that can be used to decorate our cupcakes.

You will need violet flowers for this recipe. Violets can be found in many places. If you can’t find them outside, you can get potted ones at stores, just make sure they had not been sprayed. You can make about 80 flowers with the one egg white. I picked about 15 – 20 violets at a time because it is better to work with the freshly picked plant material. The flowers do not need to be washed, just make sure you pick them from a clean place free of pesticides. When I pick the flowers, I like to leave a 1″ green stem so I can handle the flowers easier while working with them. You can remove the stems at the end.

If you plan on eating the candid violets, you have to use fresh eggs. You can do the fresh egg test to see if your egg is fresh. Immerse the egg in a pot of cold water and see if it stays flat on the bottom of the pot. It any of the sides move up or the egg moves to the surface of the water, the egg will not be suitable for eating. You can still use that egg just don’t eat it. Only use fresh eggs that will stay flat on the bottom of a pot when immersed in water if you plan on eating the violets.

Recipe for the candied violets

INGREDIENTS

about 80 organic violet flowers with 1″ stem if possible
1 egg white
1-2 tsp water
about 1 cup of fine white sugar (you can use regular white sugar and grind it quickly in a blender. Just a few pulses before it becomes powder).

DIRECTION

Separate the egg white and put it into a small bowl. Add the water to make it more workable. Lightly beat.
Measure out the sugar. 1/4 cup is enough for the first round. Use more for the additional violets.
Go and pick the violet flowers, about 15-20 at a time. I like to leave a 1″ stems on so the flowers can be handled easily later.
Using a paint brush, ‘paint’ the egg whites on the flowers. I like to put the egg white on the back first and sprinkle with sugar and do the same on the front side. Just make sure you cover the flower material well with the egg white and the sugar on both sides.
Place the prepared flowers on a sheet of wax paper and let it dry for about 6 hours. I like to occasionally move the flowers to prevent them from sticking.
You can cut off or just pinch the stems off the flowers any time.
After they are dry, put them in the fridge in an air-tight container. Refrigerated flowers are edible for 1 week and can be stored for 1 month.

Recipe for the cupcakes

Source for cup cakes: Natasha’s Kitchen, Source for frosting: Natasha’s Kitchen

Ingredients for the cupcakes

1 1/4 cup of cake flour or check out source on how to make cake flour (how to make cake flour)
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 large eggs
1/2-3/4 cup of sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup of vegetable oil
1/2 cup of buttermilk or plain kefir at room temperature

Ingredients for the icing

8 oz cream cheese at room temperature
1-1 1/2 cup of cold heavy whipping cream
1-1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 Tbsp vanilla extract

Directions for making the cupcakes

Preheat oven to 350 F.
Butter a cupcake/muffin pan or line with cupcake liners.
In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In a bowl, beat the eggs for 15-20 minutes. You can use an electrical mixer on medium high speed.
Add the sugar slowly and continue to beat for another 30 minutes on medium high speed.
Add the vanilla and the oil and beat for 1 minute on medium speed.
Add half the flour mixture from the earlier step and beat on slow medium speed until incorporated. Add half of the buttermilk and mix until incorporated. Repeat with the remaining flour and buttermilk. Beat shortly until just combined and smooth, scraping down the sides of the mixing bowl as needed. The batter should be thin.
Pour batter into muffin pan. Divide evenly.
Bake for 12-14 minutes in the pre-heated oven.
When cooled and are at room temperature, you can pipe on the frosting. See the frosting recipe below, please.

Directions for making the frosting

Whip the cream on high speed until thick, fluffy and spreadable (1-2 minutes).
In a different bowl, beat the cream cheese and the powdered sugar together starting at a low speed. When mix together, add the vanilla extract.
Fold the whipped cream gently into this mixture. Store in the refrigerator if not ready to use.

Text, photo and recipe for candied violets by twincitiesherbs.com

Source for the cupcake recipe

http://www.natashaskitchen.com/perfect-vanilla-cupcake recipe/

Coronavirus truffles

Honestly, this is just too cute to pass … It is not a cure for the corona virus but might help your kids, the young ones and the older ones alike, get through the quarantine time. Oh and the oreo cookies should be still available in the grocery stores. Recipe is from Rozina’s kitc hen.

RECIPE

makes 11 truffles

INGREDIENTS

24 Oreo cookies
113 gram cream cheese
handful of goji berries or cranberries

METHODS

Have cream cheese at room temperature.
Grind the Oreo cookies into a fine powder consistency. You can use a food processor or a rolling pin.
Work the cream cheese in with the Oreos.
Form smaller, 2″ balls with your hands.
Stick goji berries into the truffles.
We refrigerated the balls for a half hour before serving.

Enjoy and stay well!

Source

https://wordpress.com/read/blogs/136488425/posts/31232

Crustless apple, walnut and poppy seed cake (Flódni)

naturally gluten-free , dairy-free

Flódni is a unique traditional Jewish Hungarian dessert. The original recipe uses apples, poppy seeds, walnuts, plum jam and all these ingredients are baked into a flour crust. This recipe uses the three main ingredients: apples, poppy seeds and walnuts plus the plums but has no crust. It is a gluten free recipe, in fact it is a very clever gluten free twist to the original recipe as the carbohydrates come from the poppy seeds. Its sour, bitter and sweet flavors come together to give a distinct culinary experience.

Traditionally, it is made at the end of the year for Christmas and Hanukkah but can be eaten any time during the year. It is filled with symbolic meanings for the end of the year. Each layer is rich and decadent and according to folk traditions can supposedly bring prosperity, health and protection for the entire family.

I was inspired by the recipe that came from a website – credited at the end. I have been making this delicious alternative at Christmas time for years. I made some changes to the original recipe. I moved some sugar from the nut filling into the poppy seed filling. I also added plums to the poppy seed mixture and some alcohol to the apples. Oh and honestly adding a little ginger to the walnuts did wonders.

The poppy seeds need to be soaked for 1 hour. I think if you follow my recipe, the poppy seeds should have enough time to soak. While the poppy seeds are soaking, make the apple mixture. By the time you place the dish in the oven, the poppy seeds should have had enough time to soak if not feel free to wait longer before putting the dish in the oven.

RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

Ingredients for the poppy seed layer

200 g (about 1 cup) poppy seeds
1 Tbsp melted butter (coconut oil for dairy free version)
3 eggs, divided
1/2 cup sugar
handful of raisins
prunes, chopped (I used 3 prunes but feel free to experiment)
1 orange or 1/3 cup orange juice + 1 Tbsp dried orange peel

Ingredients for the apple layer

1 kg (about 7 larger) tasty cooking apples
1 Tbsp fresh chopped ginger or 1.5 tsp dried ginger ( cut and sifted)
4 Tbsp sugar or honey
1 tsp ground apple pie spice or cinnamon
pinch of salt
2 Tbsp rum (optional)

Ingredients for the top egg-white layer

150 grams (5 oz) ground walnuts
4 egg whites
1/4 – 1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp fresh ginger or 1/2 tsp dried cut and sifted ginger
salt

METHODS

Preheat oven to 300 F (150 C). Lightly butter a baking pan (8 x 11.5 x 2″).

Preparing the poppy seeds

Grind the poppy seeds. (Coffee grinder works well).
In a smaller bowl, cream the melted butter, sugar and 3 egg yolks. Add the ground poppy seeds, prunes, raisins, orange juice with the peel and pinch of salt. Mix.
Beat the 3 egg whites until stiff. Gently fold the beaten egg whites into the poppy seed mixture from earlier.
Spread this poppy seed mixture onto a lightly buttered baking pan. Let is rest for 1 hour.

Preparing the apples

Wash, peel and core the apples. Grade them through the large holes of a cheese grader. Put the grated apples in a medium sized pot and cook it in a large pot on high medium heat until the liquid evaporates. When done add rum, ginger, ground apple pie spice, pinch of salt and 4 Tbsp of sugar/honey.
Spread the apple mixture on top of the poppy seed mixture. Place the dish in the preheated oven. Bake for 40 minutes.

Adding the nut mixture

Walnut/egg white topping: Have the ground walnuts ready. By the end of the 40 minutes, beat the 4 egg whites until stiff. Gently fold in the walnuts and the sugar. Spread this mixture on top of the apples and put the dish back into the oven. Decrease the temperature to 250 F (120 C). Bake for another 40 minutes.

Let it cool and settle. Serve at room temperature.

enjoy!

Source

http://www.sutemenyeskert.cafeblog.hu

Text and photos by twincitiesherbs.com