You do not need ice cream maker to make this delicious treat!

Rum & Raisins Ice-Cream

By voloshyna, August 14, 2014

Ingredients:

• egg yolks - 4
• whole milk - 1 cup
• raisins - 1/4 cup
• rum - 1/4 cup
• heavy cream - 1 cup
• sweetened condensed milk - 1/2 cup
• confectioners sugar - 1/4 cup orto taste
• vanilla extract - 1 teaspoon

Instructions:

Soak the raisins in the rum for a couple of hours. In a medium sauce pan mix together the sugar, milk and egg yolks. cook stirring constantly over low heat, until the mixture is thick like a custard. Let cool completely and then transfer to a refrigerator for 2-3 hours. Whip the heavy cream with vanilla extract until stiff peaks. Mix together whipped cream, chilled custard and condensed milk. Transfer to an ice-cream container and place in the freezer for 1 1/2 hours. Then add the soaked raisins and mix well, return your ice-cream to the freezer. Freeze for another 4-5 hours.

Banoffee Pie is one of the easiest dessert you can make. To cook this heavenly delicious treat you will  need to sacrifice only 25 minutes of your time. I think it’s a pretty good deal for a dessert, that nobody can resist.

Banoffee Pie

By voloshyna, March 18, 2014

• Total Time: 25 minutes
• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Cook time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• For the base: -
• melted butter - 4 oz
• graham cracker crumbs - 1 1/2 cups
• For the caramel: -
• butter - 4 oz
• dark brown sugar - 1/2 cup
• sweetened condensed milk - 1 can (14 oz)
• For the filling: -
• big ripe bananas - 2, sliced
• heavy whipping cream - 2 cups
• vanilla extract - 1 teaspoon
• confectioners sugar - 3 tablespoons, or to taste
• dark chocolate - 1/3 cup, grated

Instructions:

Mix graham cracker and melted butter until well blended . Press mixture into a 9 inch pie plate. Cool in refrigerator.  Melt the butter and sugar into a non-stick saucepan over a low heat, stirring all the time until the sugar has dissolved. Add the condensed milk and bring to a rapid boil for about a minute, stirring all the time for a thick golden . Spread the caramel over the base, cool and then chill for about 1-2 hours. Meanwhile whip the heavy cream with the vanilla extract and confectioners sugar, until soft peaks. Place sliced bananas over toffee. Topped with a whipped cream. Finish with the grated chocolate. Refrigerate before serving.

I wanted to post this recipe before Christmas, but had some other nice dishes that I really wanted to share with you guys and just completely forgot about this amazing almond cookies. But I will fix my mistake.

I’ve baked a dozens of those for my friends, packed them in a cute small boxes and gave as a little New Year presents. Everybody loved them sooo much! With this recipe the holiday cookie season is officially over for me, I have a whole year to come up with new, even better cookie ideas!

Almond Thumbprint Cookies

By voloshyna, January 16, 2014

• Total Time: 60 minutes
• Prep Time: 40 minutes
• Cook time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• For the dough: -
• unsalted butter - 2 sticks, room temperature
• confectioners sugar - 3/4 cup
• egg yolks - 2
• almond extract - 1 teaspoon
• all-purpose flour - 1 3/4 cup
• almond meal - 1/2 cup
• kosher salt - 1/2 teaspoon
• For decoration: -
• skinless almonds - 1/2 cup, optional
• jam - 1/4 cup, optional

Instructions:

Using a stand or hand mixer, cream the butter and confectioners sugar until light and fluffy, 4-5 minutes. Scrape down the bowl with a spatula. Beat in the yolks and almond extract, until smooth. In a medium bowl mix all-purpose flour, almond meal and salt, combine with the butter mixture, mix well. Form the dough into a disk, wrap in a plastic and transfer into refrigerator for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 F. Lay cookie sheet with a parchment paper. Form 1 tablespoon of dough into a small balls; place on a cookie sheet. Chill 10-15 minutes. Press in the skinless almonds into the center of the cookies, or use your thumb to create an imprint, you could fill them with your favorite jam later. Bake the cookies at 350 F for 17-20 minutes. Cool cookies on racks, dust with a confectioners sugar (optional), then fill with jam.

Need to say, that this is the most easy cake I’ve ever made. I found this amazing recipe in Jamie’s Oliver “Food Revolution” cookbook and I’ve really liked the idea to make a superior dessert with minimum efforts.

Here is what Jamie Oliver says about this cake: “Panettone is a brioche-type bread from Italy. It comes in loads of different sizes – I’ve used a large one here but you could easily adapt the ingredients to make a smaller cake. Cakes don’t come much simpler than this one and the nice thing is that, even if it’s assembled roughly and things aren’t exact, it will still look cute. You’ll probably have a bit of panettone left over so keep in mind that it’s brilliant torn up for a layer in trifle or eaten toasted for breakfast”.

I’ve changed a few ingredients (like always =)), but I’m sure you will like it!

Raspberry Panettone Christmas Cake

By voloshyna, December 24, 2013

• Total Time: 40 minutes
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• heavy cream - 3 cups
• confectioners sugar - 2 tablespoons
• vanilla extract - 1 teaspoon
• sweet condensed milk - 3/4 cup
• panettone - 2 - 2 1/2 lb
• port wine - 3/4 cup
• raspberry jam - 4-5 tablespoons
• flaked almonds - 2 cups, toasted
• raspberries - 1 1/2 cups
• good-quality dark chocolate - 4 oz,

Instructions:

Place the heavy cream in a large bowl. Add confectioners sugar and vanilla extract, whisk together until the cream forms nice thick peaks. Add sweet condensed milk and mix just to combine. In a small sauce pan combine port and raspberry jam, bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Let to cool. Cut the Panettone cake into approximately 3/4 - 1-inch slices. You should get 3-4 slices. Lie a slice on a plate and drizzle over a few tablespoons of warm raspberry syrup. Reconstruct the Panettone by re-layering the slices of cake with the cream and raspberry syrup equally in between all the layered pieces. Repeat until all the layers and cake have been reconstructed. Spoon the remaining cream over and smooth it gently over the top and sides of the cake. Pat the top with the knife to create little peaks. Sprinkle the toasted almond slices, gently pressing them against the side of the cake so they stick to the cream. Place the raspberries on the top. Finish with a generous amount of dark chocolate shavings.

All my friends are just crazy about this Peanut Butter Pie. I’ve made it on Thanksgiving and it instantly became my most popular dessert. I found the recipe in the Food Network Magazine, changed a few ingredients and made this decadent pie. I will keep searching for a good dessert ideas, so you could treat your friends and family during the winter holidays!

It looks and taste just amazing, but it’s still pretty easy to make. This pure creamy delight will be a great dessert for a Christmas eve dinner.

Creamy Peanut Butter-Chocolate Pie with Toasted Meringue

By voloshyna, December 12, 2013

Ingredients:

• For the Crust: -
• unsalted butter - 5 tablespoons
• whole graham crackers - 10-11, roughly broken
• peanuts - 1/4 cup
• semisweet chocolate chips -
• For the Filling: -
• peanut butter - 1 cup, room temperature
• mascarpone - 8 ounces
• milk - 1/3 cup
• vanilla extract - 1 teaspoon
• confectioners sugar - 3/4 cup
• cold heavy cream - 1/4 cup
• For the Meringue: -
• large egg whites - 3
• sugar - 3/4 cup
• salt - 1/4 teaspoon

Instructions:

First you need to make the crust. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Butter a 10 inch pie platter. In a food processor pulse the crackers and peanuts until finely combine. Press the crumb mixture into the bottom and the side of the pie dish. Bake for about 10-12 minutes. Then cool on a rack. Meanwhile, using a microwave, melt the chocolate until smooth and uniform. Spread evenly in the pie crust; set aside until the chocolate sets, 10-15 minutes. For the filling, beat the peanut butter, mascarpone, vanilla extract and milk with a mixer, until smooth. Add the confectioners sugar and mix until incorporate. In a medium bowl beat the heavy cream until soft peaks. Gently fold half of the whipped cream into the peanut mixture until combine, then follow the rest. Spoon into the prepared dust and smooth the top. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight. And the last step is making the meringue. Fill a medium saucepan one quarter full with water. Set the saucepan over medium heat, and bring to a simmer. In a medium metal bowl combine egg whites, sugar, and salt. Place the bowl over a pot of simmering water to form a double boiler. Whisk constantly until sugar is dissolved, about 3-4 minutes. Whisk the eggs with an electric mixer, until the meringue is thick and glossy, about 8-10 minutes. Using a piping bag pipe the meringue on top of the pie. Lightly toast with the torch.

Christmas is coming, and that means you all need to taste new cookie recipes. This year I decided to bake a lot of different cookies, pack them in a lovely boxes and give to my friends as a small holiday gifts. This recipe is just a first try, but I’m already crazy about these delicate sugar balls, because they have all I like so much: cocoa powder, nuts, dried cranberries and pinch of love! That’s why they are so delicious.

You can replace pecans with any of your favorite nuts. Walnuts, hazelnuts or peanuts would be super good too.

I will try to do my best and post at least one new holiday cookie recipe every week. Please, share with me your favorite cookie recipes, I need some inspiration. Cookie marathon officially begun!

Cranberry sugar nut balls

By voloshyna, December 3, 2013

Ingredients:

• butter - 2 sticks, room temperature
• confectioners sugar - 3/4 cup, + more for dusting the cookies
• unsweetened cocoa powder - 2 tablespoons
• egg yolks - 2
• vanilla extract - 1 teaspoon
• flour - 2 1/4 cup
• salt - 1/2 teaspoon
• toasted pecans - 1 cup
• dried cranberries - 1/2 cup

Instructions:

Using a stand or hand mixer, cream the butter, sugar and cocoa powder until light and fluffy, 4-5 minutes. Scrape down the bowl with a spatula. Beat in the yolks and vanilla extract, until smooth. In a food processor, process nuts and cranberries, until you'll get some sort of paste. In a medium bowl mix flour and salt, combine with the butter mixture, until just incorporate. Follow the nut mixture, mix well. Form the dough into a disk, wrap in a plastic and transfer into refrigerator for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 F. Lay cookie sheet with a parchment paper. Form 1 tablespoon of dough into a small balls; place on a cookie sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough. Let to chill in a fridge for 15 minutes. Bake 20 minutes, or until cookies are firm. When the cookies are cool enough to handle, roll in remaining confectioners sugar and transfer to a platter.

My last recipe for the Chinet Baking Series. This Lemon Sheet Cake will be a perfect dessert for Veterans Day, everybody will definitely like the weightless cream frosting!

Lemon Rum Sheet Cake

By voloshyna, November 1, 2013

Ingredients:

• For the cake: -
• all-purpose flour - 2 cups
• freshly grated lemon zest - 2 tablespoons
• baking powder - 1 teaspoon
• salt - 1/2 teaspoon
• sugar - 1 1/2 cups
• melted butter - 1 cup
• water - 1 cup
• Greek yogurt - 1/2 cup
• eggs - 1, lightly beatten
• vanilla extract - 1 teaspoon
• heavy whipping cream - 3/4 cup, cold
• For the syrup: -
• water - 1/2 cup
• caster sugar - 6 tablespoons
• lemon juice - 3 tablespoons
• rum - 1 tablespoon
• For the frosting: -
• cream cheese - 8 oz, room temperature
• mascarpone cheese - 4 oz, room temperature
• confectioners sugar - 3/4 cup
• lemon juice - 2 teaspoons

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375 F. In a large bowl mix the flour, lemon zest, baking powder, sugar and salt. Add melted butter and beat with a hand mixer until smooth.  Add in the eggs, water, yogurt and vanilla. Mix until well combined. Spread the mixture into a greased 11-in. x 13-in. baking pan. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Meanwhile, make the lemon syrup, by boiling the water and the sugar together, then add the lemon juice. Boil for about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat. Let to cool and mix with a rum. Remove the cake from the oven and drizzle with the syrup. Leave to cool. In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese, mascarpone, lemon juice and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Stir in the whipped cream. Spread the frosting over the cake. Store in the refrigerator.

Probably this is the best dessert I’ve ever made and definitely my husband’s favorite! I don’t have enough words to describe how tasty this Tiramisu is, you just have to taste it yourself!

The secret of this recipe is to use the freshest ingredients you can find, especially eggs! Oh, one more things, make sure you have at least two layers of the biscuits (Savoiardi – crisp Italian ladyfingers).

You can use any dish you like, but it should be deep and not too big. Dessert glases or 8-inch ceramic baking dish would be perfect.
If you are making Tiramisu for the first time, this video will be very helpful http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNFSAmRAxiA

Incredible Homemade Tiramisu

By voloshyna, July 3, 2013

• Total Time: 35 minutes
• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• organic super fresh large eggs - 3, room temperature
• confectioners sugar - 3/4 or 1 cup, to taste
• mascarpone cheese - 16 oz, room temperature
• Savoiardi (Ladyfingers) - 18 (maybe you will need more)
• cold espresso - 3 cups
• cognac - 1/4 cup, divided
• bitter cocoa powder - 1/4 cup

Instructions:

In a medium saucepan, whisk together egg yolks and sugar until thick and palу. Add soft mascarpone and half of the cognac; mix until combine. In a big bowl beat whites with a small pinch of salt, until they just hold soft peaks. Gently combine egg whites and mascarpone mixture, do not overmix. In a small bowl combine cold espresso and the remaining cognac. Pour one ladyfinger at a time, soaking it no more then 3 second, otherwise they will be to soggy; transfer into a special dish. Repeat with 8 more ladyfingers and arrange in bottom of dish. When you have first layer of Savoiardi, pour over half of mascarpone mixture and spread evenly. Make another layer in same manner with remaining ladyfingers and mascarpone mixture. Remember, the layer of mascarpone always should be the last one. Cover you Tiramisu with a plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for 6 hours, or overnight. Before serving sprinkle with a cocoa powder.  

Forget about carrot cake, beet cake kicks ass! You won’t taste the beet, but it makes this cake extra moist and soft. Serve this dessert just a bit warm with a drop of freshly whipped cream.

Chocolate beet cake with whipped cream

By voloshyna, May 7, 2013

• Total Time: 55 minutes
• Prep Time: 15-20 minutes
• Cook time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

• medium beets - 2, about 2/3 lb
• dark chocolate chips - 1 1/2 cup
• espresso - 4 tbsp
• unsweetened cocoa powder - 3 tbsp
• unbleached all-purpose flour - 1 cup
• sugar - 1 cup, you can use less or more depends on your taste
• large eggs - 4, separate whites and yolks
• unsalted butter - 6 oz
• heavy whipping cream - 1/2 cup
• confectioners sugar - 1 tbsp
• poppy seeds - 1/2 tbsp

Instructions:

Bring a full pot of water to a boil and add the beets. Boil for about 25 – 30 minutes until beets are soft when poked with a fork. Let to cool and peel. Puree beets in a food processor until smooth. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt the chocolate chips, using a double boiler or microwave. Add very hot espresso, mix with a wooden spoon or spatula. Add cubed butter and stir until smooth. Whisk together flour, sugar and cocoa powder. Whisk yolks and ad them to a chocolate mixture, mix well. Then add beet puree and flour mixture, mix one more time. Beat whites until soft peaks. Gently mix whites with a batter, stirring with a spatula just until combined. Coat a 9-inch springform pan with cooking spray. Pour the batter into the pan. Transfer into the oven, reduce heat to 325 F. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Whip cold heavy cream with a confectioners sugar and poppy seeds. Serve warm cake with a tablespoon of whipped cream.

I would call this cake an Extra Apple Cake with chopped nuts and hint of honey, just like I love!  You can serve it as dessert or a breakfast coffee cake, everybody will like it.

Honey Apple Cake

By voloshyna, April 25, 2013

• Total Time: 55 minutes
• Prep Time: 15-20 minutes
• Cook time: 40-50 minutes

Ingredients:

• Granny Smith apples - 1 lb, pilled and cubed
• grated lemon zest - 1 tbsp
• lemon juice - 2 tbsp
• flour - 1 1/2 cup
• salt - 1/4 tsp
• baking powder - 1/2 tsp
• baking soda - 1/4 tsp
• eggs - 2
• brown sugar - 1/2 cup
• vegetable oil - 3 oz
• honey - 1/2 cup
• chopped walnuts - 3/4 cup
• confectioners sugar - 2 tbsp

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Generously butter an 8-inch springform pan. In a medium bowl mix together cubed apples, lemon juice and zest; set aside. In an other bowl sift flour with salt, baking soda and baking powder. In a medium bowl, beat the eggs. Slowly add the sugar while whisking; continue until the eggs become pale. Pour in the oil, whisk again. Add honey, and flour mix until combine. Then follow by the apples and half of the nuts, mix well. Pour the batter into the mold and sprinkle with a remaining nuts. Bake for about 40-50 minutes, or until the top of the cake is golden brown and a knife inserted deep into the center comes out clean; the cake may pull away from the sides of the pan. Transfer to a cooling rack and let rest for 5 minutes. Carefully run a blunt knife around the edges of the cake and remove the sides of the springform pan. Allow the cake to cool until it is just slightly warm or at room temperature. Sprinkle with a confectioners sugar.    

I love crepes so much, that I decided to share one more good recipe. This time it’s a dessert.

Crepes with lemon curd

By voloshyna, April 2, 2013

• Total Time: 01h 10min
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook time: 50-60 minutes

Ingredients:

• For the curd: -
• whole egg - 1
• yolks - 3
• sugar - 3/4 cup
• lemon juice - 1/2 cup
• zest of 2 lemons -
• For the batter: -
• all purpose flour - 1 3/4 cup
• sugar - 1/2 cup
• melted unsalted butter - 2 oz
• eggs - 3
• salt - 1/2 tsp
• milk - 1 3/4 cups
• water - 3/4 cups
• confectioners sugar - for serving
• unsalted butter - 4 tbsp

Instructions:

To make a lemon curd whisk the egg, yolks and sugar in a medium saucepan. Add the lemon juice, zest and whisk until the mixture is smooth and uniform. Set the saucepan on the stove over medium heat, cook stirring constantly, until thick - 8-10 min. If you have a cooking thermometer - use it. Cook the cream until it reaches a temperature of 160 F, then immediately remove from heat and let cool slightly. Pour into a jar or bowl and leave for several hours in the refrigerator. When the cream is cool - it will be much thicker. Cook 18-20 crepes as described in my previous recipe, but without orange butter. Fill the crepes with the lemon curd, sprinkle with a confectioners sugar and serve.

Tarte tatin – one of the most classic French desserts. I could eat this dessert literally every day, because it’s incredible delicious and so easy to cook!

Pear tarte tatin with mascarpone cream

By voloshyna, March 13, 2013

• Total Time: 01h 20min
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook time: 60 minutes

Ingredients:

• water - 2 tbsp
• confectioners sugar - 3/4
• medium firm pears - 6, pilled
• cider vinegar - 1 tbsp
• vanilla extract - 1 tbsp
• unsalted butter - 1 oz
• frozen puff pastry - 1 sheet
• mascarpone, room temperature - 6 oz
• heavy whipping cream - 3 oz
• rum - 1 tbsp
• confectioners sugar - 2-3 tbsp
• cinnamon - 1-2 tsp

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a medium ovenproof nonstick skillet combine sugar, vinegar and water. Cook without stirring until the syrup is become golden. Add butter and vanilla extract, mix well. Arrange pears, cut side up and overlapping, in circle in skillet. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until pears are tender, 10-15 min. Bake tart until pastry is puffed and golden, about 35 minutes. On a lightly floured surface, roll puff pastry; using a plate about 2 inches bigger then a skillet for the tart, cut out a round. Drap pastry round over pears, tucking edge under Bake tart until pastry is puffed and golden, about 30-35 minutes. Meanwhile in a medium bowl beat together heavy whipping cream, mascarpone, rum and confectioners sugar. Serve warm tart with a scoop of light mascarpone cream, sprinkle with cinnamon.

This dish might be new for you, but I’m sure you will like it! It’s a traditional meal in my native country – Ukraine, we cook it with a freshly picked dark cherries and serve with a sour cream. But this time I decided to serve dumplings with a berry compote, in my opinion it’s a wonderful combination of sweet and sour! I want you to cook this dish in winter, because it will remind you of warm summer days =)

P.S. In Ukraine we do not use the word dumplings, we called this dish vareniki.

Dumplings with dark cherries and berry compote

By voloshyna, January 11, 2013

Ingredients:

• For the dough: -
• all purpose flour - 3 cups + more for dusting
• eggs - 2
• cold water - 1/2 cup
• milk - 1/4 cup
• salt - 1/2 tsp
• For the filling: -
• fresh or frozen dark cherries (sour cherries) - 1 1/2 lb.
• For the compote: -
• frozen berries - 1 1/2 cup
• lemon juice - 1 tbsp
• sugar - 4-5 tbsp
• For serving: -
• butter - 2-3 tbsp
• confectioners sugar -

Instructions:

If you use frozen dark cherries - you need to defrost them. Mine was already sweetened, so I didn't add any sugar. But if you bought the fresh ones, you need to sprinkle them with 1 cup of cane sugar, let stand for 1 hour and drain the juice. Probably you would also like to make a berry compote in advance. In a small sauce pan mix all the ingredients and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring often until the sugar dissolves. Let berries boil 1-2 minutes and remove from the heat. Set aside to cool. Then you'll need to make a dough. Lightly beat the eggs with a salt and milk. In a large bowl mix flour, egg mixture and water, add more water if needed. Stir with a wooden spoon (you can make the dough in a stand mixer, or with your hands). When it becomes hard to stir,  pour sticky dough on a flour surface and continue to knead until it becomes smooth and elastic. Divide the dough into 3-4 parts. Roll each part 1/4 inch thin. Using a 2.5 inch diameter glass cut as much rounds as you can. Fill each round with 3-4 cherries, pull the sides together and seal them with your fingers to form a semicircle. You can decorate your vareniki (dumplings), just press the fork's tines on the edges of vareniki. Place them on a lightly floured board and cover with a kitchen towel. You can also freeze remaining dumplings and store in freezer in ziploc bag for later use. In a large pan bring the water to a boil, add pinch of salt. Add vareniki (not all at one time) and stir with a wooden or plastic spoon to prevent from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Cook over the medium heat until they come to the surface, cook for extra 2-3 minutes and take out into a medium bowl. Add 1 tbsp of butter (left the rest butter for another portion of dumplings) and gently mix. Serve immediately with a berry compote or sour cream. Don't forget to sprinkle with a confectioners sugar!

Savarin some kind of rum baba – moist yeast dessert, saturated in sweet syrup or light alcohol. I found this recipe in one Ukrainian culinary magazine, in this variation savarins saturated in a ginger and lemon syrup, topped with whipped cream, different fruits and berries. Every bite of this small cakes is like a pice of heaven!

Ginger & Lemon Syrup Savarins

By voloshyna, December 25, 2012

Ingredients:

• For the batter: -
• bread flour - 1 cup
• salt - 1/4 tbsp
• sugar - 2 tbsp
• dry yeast - 1 tsp
• lemon zest - 1 tbsp
• eggs - 2
• melted butter - 1/4 cup
• warm milk - 3 tbsp
• For the syrup: -
• water - 3/4 cup
• lemon juice - squeezed from 1 lemon
• granulated sugar - 1 cup
• finely chopped ginger - 1 tsp
• For the topping: -
• heavy whipping cream - 1 1/4 cup
• vanilla extract - 1 tsp
• confectioners sugar - to taste
• berries and fruits - of your choice

Instructions:

Mix the flour, sugar and yeast in a bowl with a pinch of salt. Mix the milk, melted butter and eggs, then pour in and beat well to make a thick, sticky batter. from this amount of batter you can get 1 big savarin or 4-6 small, depends on sizes of your molds. Fill the savarin molds 1/2  with a batter; cover with a towel and leave in a warm place for 30-45 minutes or until it's doubled. Preheat oven to 400 F. Bake the savarins for 10-15 minutes, until golden brown. Let them cool in their rings 3-4 min, then turn them out. To prepare the syrup, place all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Dip the savarins in the syrup then place them in a rectangular pan and drizzle more syrup over them. Cover and let them soak overnight. Add more syrup the next day if they'll absorb it. When you decided to to make a filling for your savarin rings, just whip cream with a sugar and vanilla extract until stiff peaks. Filled savarins with a homemade whipped cream and top it off with fruits and berries.

]]> http://divinecuisine.recipes/ginger-lemon-syrup-savarins/feed/ 0 http://divinecuisine.recipes/cocoa-cigars-with-chocolate-deep/ http://divinecuisine.recipes/cocoa-cigars-with-chocolate-deep/#comments Wed, 12 Dec 2012 03:42:41 +0000 http://divinecusine.com/?p=480

Cocoa cigars it is super easy and wonderful winter dessert. It looks like a bundle of firewood,  I think it’s a pretty creative treat =)

Dip this crispy cigars into a warm chocolate sauce and enjoy the perfect taste.

Cocoa cigars with a chocolate dip

By voloshyna, December 11, 2012

Ingredients:

• For the cigars: -
• phyllo sheets - 8
• butter - 8 oz
• cocoa powder - 3 tbsp
• confectioners sugar - 3-4 tbsp
• For the chocolate dip: -
• dark chocolate (70% cocoa) - 3 oz
• milk chocolate - 6 oz
• heavy whipping cream - 1 1/4 cup

Instructions:

Put the frozen phyllo pastry in the refrigerator the night before you make the recipe, allowing it to thaw gradually. Preheat oven to 400 F. In a small sauce pan melt butter, add cocoa and confectioners sugar. Prepare the phyllo dough by taking 4 layers and brushing each layer with melted sweet cocoa butter, cut it into 8 equals stripes. Roll each stripe tightly. Make the same manipulations with a remaining phyllo dough. Place your phyllo cigars on a backing sheet laid with a parchment paper and brush them with a cocoa butter. Bake for about 13-15 min, or until crisp. Meanwhile you can cook the chocolate dip. Break chocolate into small pieces, add heavy whipping cream and melt on a double boiler until smooth. Serve crispy phyllo cigars with a warm chocolate sauce.