Today I decided to give a new life to an old recipe. Found this banana loaf recipe a couple years ago and since then it’s my favorite. When I cooked it for the first time, I didn’t know how handle my new DSL camera, so I made the awful pictures. Now I have a decent photography skills and I can show you this banana bread in all its glory!  I got a hundreds compliments for this cake, especially when I served it with a warm caramel syrup and a small hill of whipped cream. Cook it at home and you will not regret!

Amazing banana loaf

By voloshyna, April 17, 2013

• Total Time: 60 minutes
• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook time: 45-60 minutes

Ingredients:

• bananas - 2
• unsalted butter - 1 stick, room temperature
• superfine sugar - 1 cup
• ground walnuts - 1 3/4 oz
• eggs - 2 lightly beaten
• all purpose flour - 1 1/2 cups, sifted
• salt - 1 tsp
• baking soda - 1 tsp
• baking powder - 1 tsp
• sour cream - 1/2 cup

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Puree one banana. In a medium bowl cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the ground walnuts and eggs. Sift the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda into the banana mixture and mix together well. Add the sour cream and banana puree, mix one more time. Spray an 7 1/4 x 2 3/4 x 3in deep loaf tin with cooking spray. Pour in the mixture. Slice the remaining banana and decorate the top. Bake in the middle shelf for 50-60 minutes. To test the loaf is cooked, push a toothpick through the center - it should come away clean. Leave to cool on a wire rack. Serve with warm caramel syrup and whipped cream.

You just have to try this crepes. Recently found this recipe in the Camille Le Fol’s cookbook. Just spectacular dish. When you serve it, you need to pour the warm orange liqueur and set a fire. Unfortunately, the pictures of burning crepes came out no good. But anyway it was exciting. I can bet, you will surprise your friends and family with this dish. It’s really a lot easier than you think!

Crepes Suzette

By voloshyna, July 21, 2012

• Total Time: 03h 10min
• Prep Time: 02h 30min
• Cook time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

• For the batter: -
• all-purpose flour - 1 3/4 cup
• sugar - 1/2 cup
• unsalted butter - 2 oz
• eggs - 3
• salt - good pinch
• milk - 1 3/4 cup
• water - 3/4 cup
• For the filling: -
• unsalted butter - 5 oz
• zest of 1 orange - finely grated
• superfine sugar - 3/4 cup
• To serve: -
• orange liqueur - 7 tbs.
• powdered sugar - 1 tbs.

Instructions:

In a large bowl whisk the eggs with salt, gradually add milk. Mix flour and sugar, sift in the milk-egg mixture, stir with a wire whisk to blend well. Add the water and melted butter. Cover the bowl with the dough with plastic food wrap, and  refrigerate for 2 hours. Meanwhile, cream the softened butter with orange zest, powdered sugar and 1 tbs orange liqueur. Make 18-20 very thin crepes. Spread a thing layer of orange cream over each crepe, fold into a triangle and arrange them in a fan shape in an ovenproof dish.  Reheat in the oven at 210 F for 10 minutes before serving.  Warm the remaining liquer in a smal sauce pan. Bring the crepes to the table, powder them with confectioners sugar, and pour over the warmer liueur. Set alight and spoon the flaming liqueur over the crepes until the flame die down. Serve immeditely.

Financier – the classic French dessert with a terrific nutty taste from the beurre noisette. And if you soak them in pear jam and pear vodka syrup, your dessert will become moist and incredibly tender. If you want you can can replace vodka by dark rum or other alcohol. I tell you honestly – not  in every restaurant you can try this yummy.

Financiers with pear vodka

By voloshyna, July 18, 2012

• Total Time: 01h 05min
• Prep Time: 45 minutes
• Cook time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• egg whites - 6
• superfine sugar - 3/4 cup
• ground almond - 2 oz
• all-purpose flour - 9 tbs.
• golden raising - 5 oz
• For the beurre noisette: -
• unsalted butter - 10 tbs.
• For the sugar syrup: -
• sugar - 1/2 cup
• water - 100 ml
• For the deep: -
• pear vodka - 100 ml
• water - 100 ml
• pear jam - 5 tbs. (blended jam or only syrup)

Instructions:

To make a beurre noisette, you need to melt the butter in a small sauce pan. Boil until it becomes light brown. Pour into a bowl and let cool. Place sugar and water in a pan. Simmer until the sugar dissolves, stirring contininuously. Bring to a boil, turn off after about 1 minute. Add the raisins to the hot syrup and leave to cool. Preheat oven to 400 F. Beat the egg whites until they start to foam, but still are not whipped. Continuing to whisk, gradually add sugar. Beat until thick and creamy. Add the sifted flour and ground almonds, beat for a short time just to mix, add the cooled beurre noisette . Derain the raisins and add to mixture. Spoon the mixture into molds for financiers 3 x 1 1/4 x 1 1/4. Bake for 20 minutes. Then remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Mix all the ingredients for the deep. I will tell you one trick - for the perfect moisturising, you need to pour the liquid into a spray. The process became much easier. Spray financiers, while they are still hot.