home-made :*

orange + yogurt syrup cake

a pretty dense cake yet moist as you pour the orange syrup over it. best served with a cup of black tea.

ingredients:
430ml (1 3/4 cups) fresh orange juice
430g (2 cups) caster sugar
Melted butter, to grease
250g unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 tsp finely grated orange rind
4 eggs, separated
185g (1 cup) fine semolina
150g (1 cup) plain flour
3/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
260g (1 cup) Greek-style natural yoghurt

1. Stir orange juice and 215g (1 cup) of the sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes or until the syrup thickens. Set aside to cool.

2. Preheat oven to 170°C. Lightly grease a 10 x 20cm (base measurement) loaf pan with melted butter. Use an electric beater to beat butter, remaining sugar and orange rind in a small bowl until pale and creamy. Add egg yolks, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Transfer to a large bowl. Sift over the semolina, flour and bicarbonate of soda. Add the yoghurt and stir until well combined.

3. Use a clean electric beater to beat the egg whites in a large clean, dry bowl until firm peaks form. Fold one-third of the egg white into the semolina mixture. Gently fold in remaining egg white until combined. Spoon mixture into prepared pan. Smooth the surface. Bake for 50-55 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

4. Use a skewer to prick the top of the hot cake all over. Pour the syrup over the cake and set aside to cool.

recipe found here :*

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dark chocolate + orange cake

super rich and strong flavored cake. a bit fatty (but yummy), i believe :p

ingredients:
1 Seville orange
a little melted butter, for greasing
100g plain chocolate, broken into pieces
3 eggs
280g caster sugar
240ml sunflower oil
25g cocoa powder
250g plain flour
1½ tsp baking powder
orange candied peel, to decorate

For the chocolate ganache
200g plain chocolate, broken into pieces
225ml double cream

1. Pierce the orange with a skewer (right through). Cook in boiling water for 30 minutes until soft. Whizz the whole orange in a food processor until smooth; let cool.

2. Preheat the oven to 180C/gas 4/fan 160C.Grease and line the base of a 23cm/9in round cake tin. Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water or in the microwave for 2 minutes on High, stirring after 1 minute. Let cool.

3. In a large bowl, lightly beat the eggs, sugar and oil. Gradually beat in the puréed orange, discarding any pips, then stir in the cooled melted chocolate. Sift in the cocoa, flour and baking powder. Mix well and pour into the tin. Bake in the centre of the oven for 55 minutes, or until the cake springs back when lightly pressed in the middle. (Check after 45 minutes and cover with foil if it is browning too much.) Allow to cool for 10 minutes in the tin, then turn out on to a wire rack to cool completely.

4. Make the chocolate ganache: put the chocolate into a heatproof bowl. Bring the cream to the boil and pour over the chocolate. Leave for 2 minutes, then stir until smooth. Set aside until firm enough to spread over the cake – up to 1½ hours.

5. Transfer the cake to a serving plate. Using a palette knife, swirl the ganache over the top. Decorate with strips of candied orange peel.


recipe found here :D
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spinach/ricotta + potato/bacon quiche 

all-time favourite savory snack. yumm. i googled the recipes and modified them to my own version.

ingredients:
3 clovers garlic
1/2 onion
1 tsp olive oil
4 eggs
125 gr spinach leaves
125 gr ricotta cheese
3 slices of mid cut bacon
2 small potatoes
1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup milk
salt, pepper, nutmeg
2 pastry sheets
mozzarella cheese

you'll need:
a cupcake tray (12 cups-tray for this recipe)

steps:
1.  set the oven to 180*C
2. cut roughly the spinach leaves, crumble off the ricotta, set aside
3. cut the potatoes into small cubes, boil them til almost cooked (don't leave it too soft)
4. dice the bacon into small pieces, fry them til dry
5. meanwhile, prepare the baking tray (i just use the cupcake tray here). brush the olive oil over the tray, you can substitute the oil with some butter.
6. cut the pastry (here's the trick). cut the pastry into long rectangular shape, we'll use this to build the pastry 'wall'; then use the cookie cutter to cut some more into circles. place the rectangular sheet into and around the concave (i sounded too technical again now), join the edges neatly. then place the circle sheet to the bottom.

something like this..

5. after those, fry the garlic and onion til they change colour and smell nice
6. mix the eggs with cream, milk and other seasonings, and also the fried garlic and onion
7. divide the mixture into two, mix one with the spinach and ricotta; the other one with potato and bacon.
8. fill in the pastry cups evenly (6 for each)

9. bake in the oven for 35 mins then you're done!

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*** more to come :D