Chocolate hazelnut squares

 

  

Just got back home from another relaxing day in the nature. I picked the fresh nettle, and we used it to bake quiches and pastries, and drink nettle tea (so refreshing!). Old folks say nettle is best if eaten before the beginning of May. I don't know if there is any truth to that, but we made sure to make the best of it this weekend. It smelled so wonderfully natural.

I baked the biscuit early in the morning and brought it with me. Once at the weekend house, I melted some chocolate, sprinkled hazelnuts and we had a nice dessert to finish the hard working day.


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Nedavno smo stigli kući nakon još jednog dana u prirodi. Brala sam svježu koprivu/žaru, pa smo od nje pravili uljevak i uštipke (recept M.-ove nane), i pravili osvježavajući čaj. Naši stari kažu da je koprivu najbolje jesti prije početka maja. Ne znam koliko tu ima istine, ali u svakom slučaju mi smo se danas potrudili da iskoristimo to što je ona obilato narasla u našoj bašti. Dok sam je brala, mirisala je istinski prirodno. Nekako sam poželjela taj miris.  

Biskvit sam ispekla jutros prije nego smo krenuli i ponijela ga na vikendicu. Poslijepodne sam istopila čokoladu za kuhanje, prelila je preko biskvita, posula prženim lješnicima i ubrzo smo imali čim zasladiti kraj napornog radnog dana.

I am leaving you with the recipe for chocolate hazelnut squares and some photos from our day. I wanted to share something with you before falling (soundly) asleep.

Have a nice spring weekend.


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Ostavljam vas sa receptom za biskvit od lješnika i čokolade i nekoliko fotografija današnjeg dana. Požurila sam da podijelim nešto s vama prije nego što se, doslovce, srušim u krevet.

Ugodan vikend i sretan praznik!

Chocolate Hazelnut Squares

Ingredients

3 eggs

120 grams muscovado sugar

280 g pureed bananas (about three medium-size bananas, ripe)

1 cup olive oil

1/2 of a vanilla bean (seeds scraped)

80 g hazelnut flour

50 g rice flour

70 g white flour

2 tbsp cocoa powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

In a large bowl mix together the dry ingredients: hazelnut, rice and white flour, cocoa, salt, and baking soda. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs and sugar. Add vanilla, pureed bananas, and olive oil, and mix until incorporated. Add the mixture to the dry ingredients and whisk gently until combined.

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Line half a sheet pan with baking paper and pour the batter, spreading evenly. Bake until set (10 - 15 minutes). Let cool. 

Optional: Melt 200 g of dark chocolate with 5 tablespoons of butter. Pour over the biscuit, decorate with roasted hazelnuts or dust with cocoa, and serve.


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Biskvit od lješnika i čokolade

Sastojci

3 jaja

120 grama muscovado šećera (ili smeđeg šećera)

280 g izgnječenih banana (otprilike tri zrele banane srednje veličine)

1 čaša maslinovog ulja

1/2 vanilin štapića (sjemenke)

80 g lješnikovog brašna

50 g rižinog brašna

70 g bijelog brašna

2 kašike kakao praha

1/2 kašičice soli
1/2 kašičice sode bikarbone

U većoj zdjeli pomiješajte suhe sastojke: lješnikovo, rižino i bijelo brašno, kakao, sol i sodu bikarbonu. U posebnoj zdjeli umutite jaja sa šećerom, dodajte zrna vanilije, izgnječene banane (ja sam koristila štap mikser) i maslinovo ulje, pa sve sjedinite. Dodajte ovu smjesu suhim sastojcima, i lagano miješajte dok se ne napravi jedinstvena smjesa.

Zagrijte pećnicu na 180 C. Na dno pravougaonog pleha stavite papir za pečenje i ulijte smjesu. Rasporedite je ravnomjerno i pecite dok se ne stisne (10 - 15 minuta). Ohladite na kućnoj temperaturi. 

Proizvoljno: Istopite 100 g čokolade za kuhanje sa 5 kašika maslaca. Prelijte preko biskvita (u tankom sloju), ukrasite sa prženim lješnicima/kakao prahom, i servirajte.

Earth day and I helped plant the garlic

Due to a high level of stress I put myself under, which has started to take toll on my health, M. insisted we spend the entire weekend in the nature. 

On Saturday, he took me out for an early morning walk in Čavljak. It was wonderful. The weather was chilly yet sunny, and we were pretty much the only people there. Fresh air, silence - I wasn't even allowed to take my camera (I ended up taking a few photos with my phone of a turquoise egg shell with mini brown spots which has, apparently, fallen out of a bird's nest - I had to). There was still some snow here and there, and plenty of mud in the shade, but walking around in my rubber boots had its childish charm.


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Zadnjih je dana (mjeseci) bilo puno stresa, i moj organizam je već počeo da reaguje. Zbog toga je M. insistirao da se ovaj vikend odmorim i da što više vremena provedemo u prirodi. 

U subotu je predložio da odemo prošetati na Čavljak. Kakva divna ideja. Vrijeme je bilo svježe ali sunčano, a obzirom da smo poranili imali smo osjećaj da smo sami na svijetu. Čist, ugodan zrak i tišina - čak me zamolio da ne nosim ni fotoaparat (na kraju sam morala da mobilnim telefonom uslikam predivnu tirkiznoplavu školjku jajeta sa smeđim tačkicama koju smo našli u travi a koja je vjerovatno ispala iz nekog gnjezda - to sam zaista morala). Ponegdje smo morali proći kroz malo snijega, a dijelove puta koji su u hladu prešli smo bezbrižno i dječije hodajući kroz blato.

We spend Sunday at the weekend house doing more work in the field and enjoying quality time with the family. Everyone was happy to be out on a sunny day. 

Much of the planting is underway - M.'s grandfather asked me to help by separating a few of the garlic bulbs for planting. I took them apart with my hands, which left white dust on my skin, along with subtle garlic smell. I couldn't help thinking that each individual clove will come to be a full bulb with many more cloves. Nature is still a true wonder to me.


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Nedjelju smo proveli na vikendici, radeći u polju i družeći se sa porodicom. Svima je bilo drago što je dan lijep i što smo tu skupa. 

Radovi na sađenju se nastavljaju - M.-ov dedo me zamolio da raskomadam glavice bijelog luka kako bi se on mogao posaditi. Razdvajala sam ih rukama što je ostavilo bijeli prah i gotovo neznatan miris bijelog luka na mojoj koži. Nisam mogla da ne pomislim kako će od svake čehne niknuti glavica sa još više istih. Priroda je zaista zadivljujuća.

I walked around and made some photos. Our bees were busily harvesting their food from the pink and white tree blossoms. I came as close as I could, watching their hard work. The gentle and somehow modest smell of blossoms surprised me.

Hope you too found a way to reconnect with the nature for Earth Day. Really, don't we want to preserve it in all its beauty?


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Šetala sam i fotografisala. Pčele su vrijedno skupljale svoju hranu sa grana prekrivenih bijelim i rozim beharom. Približila sam im se koliko sam mogla i posmatrala njihov rad. Lagan, i na neki način zatomljen miris behara me u trenutku iznenadio.

Nadam se da ste i vi našli neki način da se vratite prirodi za Dan planete Zemlje. Zar je ne želimo sačuvati u svoj njenoj ljepoti?

Vanilla and coconut pudding

M. recently sent me a link to a website with loads of healthy and simple recipes that he discovered. I have already selected a few to try - and this pudding was the very first one. He really likes pudding, and while I try to steer him away from the plastic box or paper bag product, every now and then I will spot the little box in the refrigerator. I am happy that I discovered this recipe, since it is a great alternative. It is truly delicious and entirely made from scratch - in a matter of minutes (you'll see!).

I recommend this especially to those of you with little ones - this is a delicious dessert you can let your children enjoy, as you try to teach them to eat healthily.


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Nedavno mi je M. poslao link za web stranicu sa jednostavnim i zdravim receptima - kaže, možda će ti se svidjeti. Bio je u pravu - već sam odvojila nekoliko recepata, a prvi koji sam probala je upravo ovaj puding. Najviše sam to uradila radi njega - inače nije neki ljubitelj slatkiša, ali puding voli i često me pita da mu napravim onaj iz kesice (ili sam kupi gotovi). U želji da zaobiđem sve to, sretna sam što sam našla ovaj recept kao alternativu kupovnim jer je zaista ukusan, a i spreman je za nekoliko minuta (vidjećete!).

Posebno ga preporučujem vama koji imate dječicu - mislim da će im se dopasti, a vi možete bez griže savjesti pustiti svoje dijete da uživa u nečemu slatkom.

Vanilla and coconut pudding

Ingredients

1 liter soy milk (you can use 0.5 l soy, and 0,5 l regular milk, if preferred)
400 ml coconut milk
6 tbsp maple syrup or honey
seeds of 1 vanilla bean
10 tbsp tapioca flour (or starch)
2 bananas (optional)

In a medium sauce pan, combine soy and coconut milk. Remove one cup of the mixed milk and place it in medium size bowl. Add honey and seeds of vanilla bean to the remaining milk in the pan.

Add tapioca flour to the reserved milk. Whisk until fully dissolved. Start heating the milk in the pan. Stir occasionally with a spatula (using a whisk will make the milk foam). Peel and slice the bananas. Just when the milk is about to boil, remove it from the heat, and slowly add the dissolved starch. Stir gently with a spatula until combined - the mixture will begin to thicken. Return to medium heat and let boil for a second or two. Add the bananas.

Let the mixture cool and then pour it in the serving bowls. Bananas really make this a wholesome dessert but I prefer it sans bananas because I find them in general to be a bit on the sweet side. However, since the pudding is only moderately sweet (no white sugar needed), many will probably enjoy it more with the bananas.


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Puding sa vanilijom i kokosom 

Sastojci

1 litar sojinog mlijeka (možete koristiti 0.5 l sojinog, i 0,5 l regularnog, kravljeg mlijeka)
400 ml kokosovog mlijeka (Alnatura)
6 kašika meda
sjemenke jednog štapića vanilije
10 kašika gustina

2 banane (ako želite) 

U šerpici srednje veličine, pomiješajte sojino i kokosovo mlijeko. Odvojite jednu čašu mlijeka u posebnu plastičnu zdjelu. Ostatku mlijeka u šerpici dodajte med i vaniliju.

Odvojenom mlijeku dodajte gustin i mutite dok se gustin ne rastopi. Počnite zagrijavati mlijeko u šerpici, i povremeno ga promiješajte (gumenom, a ne metalnom mutilicom, jer će se na vrhu početi stvarati pjena). Ogulite i narežite banane. Trenutak prije nego mlijeko počne da kuha, sklonite ga sa toplote i lagano dodajte mlijeko u kojem ste rastopili gustin. Promiješajte gumenom mutilicom dok se u potpunosti ne pomiješaju - smjesa će brzo postati gušća. Ponovno zagrijte smjesu dok ne počne da ključa i odmah je sklonite sa vatre. Dodajte banane.

Pustite da se smjesa hladi 5-10 minuta, uspite je u zdjelice za serviranje i servirajte odmah ili dodatno ohladite. Hranjive banane su bitan sastojak ovog deserta, iako je meni ukusniji bez njih (meni su banane inače malo previše slatke). Obzirom da sam puding nije puno sladak, pretpostavljam da će većini biti ukusniji sa bananama. 

Ginger lime cheesecake

While patiently waiting for summer and the many fruits it brings, I prepared this refreshing, summer-y cheesecake. The choice of in-season fruit is at present very limited, so I focused on the citrus family. Lime has a truly lovely, fresh aroma - I made the cake on Wednesday evening; it is Saturday today and the kitchen still smells wonderfully.

Ginger Lime Cheesecake

Ingredients

350 g digestive cookies

1 tbsp fresh ground ginger

500 g mascarpone cheese

4-5 limes (juice and zest)

50 g butter

Confectioners' sugar (about 10 tbsp)

In a medium size bowl grind the biscuits to smooth crumbs, and mix in the fresh ginger. In a separate saucepan melt the butter over low heat, and add it to the crumbs. Gently mix until the crumbs keep together when pressed with the back of a spoon. Transfer the crumbs to the bottom of your pan, and press and flatten them with your hands. Refrigerate for half an hour or until you prepare the cream.

Place the mascarpone into a large bowl, and mix with the icing sugar. Zest and then juice the limes. Add the lime juice and about one-third of zest (save some for sprinkling later) to the sugar and mascarpone mix. Spoon onto the cookie base and smooth out with a spatula. Freeze for an hour and chill in the fridge for 15 minutes before serving.


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U iščekivanju ljeta i boljeg izbora voća, pripremila sam ovu osvježavajuću tortu od sira. U ovoj sezoni, izbor voća je reduciran, a ja se trudim da ne kupujem vansezonsko. Limeta ima zaista divnu aromu - kolač sam pravila u srijedu navečer; sad je subota a kuhinja još uvijek miriše.

Torta od sira sa đumbirom i limetom 

Sastojci

350 g digestive keksa
1 kašika svježe naribanog đumbira
500 g mascarpone sira
4-5 limeta (sok i korica)
50 g maslaca

Šećer u prahu (oko 10 kašika) 

U zdjeli srednje veličine izmrvite kekse i dodajte im svježi đumbir. Istopite maslac na laganoj temperaturi i dodajte ga mrvicama. Lagano izmiješajte dok mrvice počnu da se lijepe skupa. Istresite smjesu na dno pleha za pečenje, te je pritisnite i poravnajte rukama. Stavite u frižider na pola sata ili dok pripremite kremu.

U većoj zdjeli pomiješajte mascarpone sir sa šećerom u prahu. Naribajte koricu limeta a zatim ih iscijedite. Mješavini sira i šećera dodajte sok i oko trećinu naribane korice (ostavite dio za dekoraciju na kraju). Premažite kremom kekse i zamrznite cheesecake na jedan sat. Prije serviranje čuvajte kratko u frižideru.