Vegetable Paella

Here I am again with a delicious spanish dish! :-) You can make paella with anything u want. I prefered different kinds of vegetable.
Ingredients:
1 onion peeled and diced
2 tomatoes diced
1 orange bell pepper diced
1 red bell pepper diced
a few jalapeno peppers diced
pleurotous mushrooms cut into large pieces
a few asparaguses cut
about 2 cups paella rice (i used arborio and turned out just fine)

Preparation:
Heat a large pan with olive oil and a little butter. Add the onion and cook until golden. Then add the peppers and cook for about 4 mins.
Add the mushrooms and cook for 5 more mins.

Then add the rice and cook for 2 mins. Add 4 cups of vegetable broth, turn down the fire to minimum, add the asparaguses and cook until few juices are left in the pan. Do not mix the food in the meantime.

The rice must be a little al dente when u take off the fire.
Enjoy warm with a glass of white wine!
Good luck!! :-)

xoxo
B.

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Quinoa Salad

Hello everyone!!! :-) Hope u are all spending a wonderful weekend!! So today I have a healthy recipe for you..Quinoa salad with...whatever's in the fridge..lol :-)
Quinoa is an ancient food cultivated in South American Andes since at least 3000 BC. The ancient Inkas called quinoa the "mother grain" and revered it as sacred. The quinoa seed is high in protein, calcium and iron, a relatively good source of vitamin E and several of the B vitamins.It contains an almost perfect balance of all eight essential amino acids needed for tissue development in humans. It is exceptionally high in lysine, cystine and methionine-amino acids typically low in other grains.
Before cooking, the seeds must be rinsed to remove their bitter resin-like coating, which is called saponin. Be careful with that.
For this quinoa salad, I used whatever I had in my fridge, so feel free to experiment with the flavours..;-)
Ingredients:
1 cup of uncooked quinoa
1 red bell pepper diced
2 medium tomatoes diced
2 spicy jalapeno peppers diced
1 cup of sweet corn
1 cup of red or black beans
1/2 avocado diced
Some fresh chopped parsley
Greek Feta cheese
Lime juice
Salt
4 kinds of pepper and cilanter
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar

Preparation:
1 cup of quinoa needs 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered for 15 mins and then withdraw from fire and let it stand for about 5 more mins. Let it cool.
In a big bowl mix the peppers, tomatoes, corn, beans, avocado and parsley. Mix in the quinoa. Prepare the dressing by combining the olive oil, vinegar and lime juice and add to the salad. Season with salt and pepper. Add feta cheese on top.

Tastes delicious and is very very good for your health.
Hope u enjoy!!! :-)
Good luck

xoxo
B.

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Caramelized Apple Brownie

And here we are again!!! :) May is just around the corner and spring makes slowwww steps towards us..It should be sunny and reaaally warm here this time of the season..but instead it is rainy and a bit cold still..
Today we're making a slightly different kind of applepie, that I'm sure u'll love!!! :)
Ingredients:
For the apples:
1/2 cup brown sugar (100gr.)
50 gr.butter
2 apples washed and cut in thin slices (leave the peel on)
For the brownie:
110 gr. butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups all purpose flour, sieved
2 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp grounded cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup roughly chopped walnuts
2 apples in thick sticks
Preparation:
Warm the butter with the sugar in a pan until melted. Pour the mixture in a round pan and add the apple slices, spread like a vendalia(one next to the other).

In a bowl beat the butter with the sugar until fluffy and white. Add the eggs (whisked) and beat until well blended. Then gradually add the flour, baking powder, soda, cinnamon and nutmeg. Keep beating until everything is well mixed and then add the apple sticks and the walnuts. Fold the mixture with a spoon and add it on top of the apple slices.

Bake in preheated oven at 180 C for about 40 mins until golden brown.

Let it cool for about 10 mins and then turn it upside down.

Enjoy with vanilla ice-cream!!! :)
Good luck!!!

xoxo
B.

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Easter Bread..tsoureki!!

Great Friday today...and I finally found some time to post that easter bread recipe I had told you about...Soo, get your ovens warm and start baking!!! I promise you won't regret!!! ;)
Ingredients:
80gr. wet yeast
380 ml fresh full fat milk + 80 ml more, luke-warm
4 eggs, preferrably bio + 2 more for topping
250 gr milk butter at room temperature, cut in pieces
1.360 all-purpose flour (strong) sieved
240 gr. caster sugar
2 pinches salt
16 gr. machlepi (about 2 tsps, not very full)
16 gr. mastic crystals (about 1 tsp) crushed with a little confectioner's sugar, until they become light dust
file almond for topping
Preparation:
1.In a small bowl we add the 80 ml of lukewarm milk and dissolve the yeast in it.
2.In the mixer bowl we put all the solid ingredients, the flour, the sugar and the salt.
3.We add the eggs...
4...the yeast mixture..
5...and the rest of the milk.
6. We mould the ingredients in medium speed until well blended.
7.We partially add the butter and keep moulding.
8.At first, the dough will be sticky. DON"T get carried away and add more flour.As you keep moulding you will see that the dough gathers on the mixer hook. Then it is ready.
9.We add the mastic and the machlepi and mould for a few more seconds.
10.We make a ball with the dough, put it in a bowl, cover it with a towel and let it in a warm place for 2-3 hours(maybe more) to double in size.
11.We transfer the dough on a surface and mould it a little with our hands, so that the air leaves.
12.We divide the dough in pieces. Depends if you want to make big tsourekia or little ones. I divided it in 100 gr.each. Make little balls and then shape it however you like.

13.Place them in the oven pan on baking paper and let it double in size again, for about 1 hour in warm place.
14.Mix the 2 remaining eggs with a liitle water and with a brush, spread it over the tsourekia. Carefully, because if you pinch it, the air will go and it will flatten.
15.Sprinkle with the almonds and bake in preheated oven at 170 C for about 30 mins, until it becomes golden brown.
The house will smell like Easter and your bellies will crave for that delicious treat!!!
Enjoy with a glass of hot cocoa, spread with honey, jam or nutella, or even as it is with red boiled eggs!!!
Good luck!!!:)
And Happy Easter to u all!!! May the Holy Spirit fill our hearts with love, faith and compassion!!

xoxo
B.

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Easter Cookies

And since greek orthodox Easter is just around the corner..it's perfect time for baking some cookies too..:)
Ingredients:
500 gr. milk butter at room temperature
500 gr. sugar
4 eggs
1/2 water glass of fresh orange juice
Grind of 3 oranges
10 gr. baking powder
1 tsp. not full baking soda
2 vanillas
1 pinch mastic crushed
1 pinch salt
1.350 gr. all purpose sieved flour
Preparation:
Beat the butter with the sugar, the salt, the mastic, the grind and vanillas for 6-7 mins until fluffy. In a bowl we beat the eggs and add them in the mixer bowl. We add the baking soda well mixed with the orange juice. We slowly add the flour with the baking powder. We must have a fluffy and easy to mould dough.

We cover it and let it rest for at least 30 mins.
We shape the cookies in whatever we like and add them in pans covered with baking paper. We beat an egg yolk with a little sugar in a bowl and spread it with a brush over the cookies.

We bake in preheated oven at 180C for 20-25 mins, until golden brown. We let them cool in a rack and keep them in airtight box.

Good luck!!
You should definitely try them!! They are mmmm....delicious!!! :)

xoxo
B.

P.S. Stay tuned for Greek Easter Bread (Tsoureki) recipe!!! ;)

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Raspberry Chocolate Muffins :)

Hello everyone!!!! :) Hope you are all wonderful and smiling!!! So...I got back from a lousy day at work yesterday afternoon...feeling sooooo tired and troubled, with an awful headache..
And what better way to make all these pass from baking???? :)
So..here we go..
Recipe from Golden Book of Baking.
Ingredients:
300 gr. all purpose-flour
150 gr. caster sugar (superfine)
2 tsps. baking powder
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. salt
125 ml milk
125 ml sour cream (I used Greek strained yoghurt and worked out just fine)
60 gr butter, melted
1 large egg, lightly beaten
150 white chocolate coarsely chopped (You can mix other chocolates if you like. I used half white and half dark)
150 gr fresh or frozen raspberries

Preparation:
Sieve the flour, baking powder and cinnamon in a large bowl. Add the sugar and the salt. In another bowl beat the milk, sour cream or yoghurt, butter and eggs until just blended. Stir the milk mixture into the dry ingredients. Then add the chocolate and raspberries. Spoon the batter into a 12-cup muffin pan lined with paper baking cups, filling each three quarters full.

Bake for 25-30 mins in preheated oven at 180C, or until golden brown. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Good luck!!!
Hope you enjoy!!

xoxo
B.

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Gnocchi with mushrooms and gorgonzola sauce

I found a recipe the other day on martha stewarts site. I alternated it just a tiny bit. The result was amazingly tasty!!
I used fresh packed italian gnocchi.
Ingredients:
1 pack of fresh gnocchi
1 onion
1 garlic
1 cup of heavy cream
About 100-125 gr. gorgonzola cheese
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
Salt and pepper (I used 3 kinds of peppers)
Olive oil and a little butter
200 gr. fresh mushrooms coarsely chopped
Preparation:
1.Boil the gnocchi for about 4 mins, until they come to surface.
2.Heat olive oil and a little butter in a pan. Add the chopped onion and garlic and cook for a while until golden. Add the mushrooms and cook for about 5 mins stirring well. Add a little water and cook.
3.In another pan heat the heavy cream until it comes to boil, stirring continually, until it thickens a bit. Add the gorgonzola cheese, salt, peppers and the nutmeg. Cook until it becomes a well blended sauce. Add the cheese sauce in the mushrooms and cook for another 2-3 mins.
4. Add the boiled gnocchi and mix well.
5.Serve with a glass of white wine and some freshly chopped parsley.

Hope you enjoy!!
Good luck!
xoxo
B.

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Clean Monday - Lagana

Clean Monday today here in Greece. It's the first day of the Eastern Orthodox Christian. The name refers to the leaving behind of sinful attitudes and non-fasting food.
It's a public holiday and is celebrated with outdoor excursions, consumption of fasting food and the custom of flying kites.
One of our traditional food is a special kind of bread eaten only at this day called "lagana". It's thin and crispy and yiammee!!! :)
Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

20 gr. fresh yeast
1/2 cup warm water (40C)
1 kg all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons superfine sugar
sesame for sprinkling
Preparation:
Mix the yeast in the warm water until it is dissolved. Add some flour until it becomes a thick mash. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave in a warm place for 12 hours. It will double in size and then "sit".

Sieve the remaining flour and the salt in a bowl. Make a hole in the middle and add the sugar, the olive oil, the yeast mixture and 2 cups of warm water.

Start moulding, until you have a soft, elastic, easy to mould dough. If the dough is too dry, add a little extra water, 1 tablespoon at a time. If the dough is too sticky, add extra flour, 1 tablespoon at a time. Cover it and let it double in size.
Then divide the dough in  half , put them in lightly floured surface and roll the doughs half finger thick, giving them a rectangular shape.

Put them in pans covered with baking paper and let them double in size.
With a fork pinch the doughs all around, sprinkle with a little water and sesame on top. Bake in 200C for about 40 mins.

Enjoy with halva or butter and jam!!

Good luck!!;)

xoxo

B.

"Wash yourselves and ye shall be clean; put away the wicked ways from your souls before Mine eyes; cease to do evil; learn to do well. Seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, consider the fatherless, and plead for the widow. Come then, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: Though your sins be as scarlet, I will make them white as snow; and though they be red like crimson, I will make them white as wool (vv. 16–8)." Isaiah 1:1-20

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Frosted Chocolate Fudge Cake...slourp!!! :)

Hello my dear friends!!! Hope you are all well and happy....And I'm here to treat you with a piece of tastefull chocolate cake..;)
Ingredients:
115 gr plain chocolate broken into squares
175 gr (3/4 cup) softened unsalted butter or margarine
150 gr light brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs
150 ml plain strained yogurt
150 gr (1 1/4 cups) self-rising flour
confectioner's sugar and chocolate curls to decorate
For the frosting:
115 gr dark bitter chocolate broken into squares
50 gr unsalted butter
200 gr confectioner's sugar
90 ml plain strained yogurt
Preparation:
Melt the chocolate in a bain-marie. Beat the sugar with the butter until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla extract and then gradually add the beaten eggs. Stir in the melted chocolate and yogurt. Fold in the flour with a metal spoon.
Divide the mixture between two 20cm round pans covered with baking paper. Bake for 30 mins or until the cakes are firm to the touch in preheated oven to 190C. Turn out and cool on a wire rack.

For the frosting, melt the chocolate and butter in a bain-marie. Remove from the heat and stir in the confectioner's sugar and yogurt.
Mix well, then beat until the frosting begins to cool and thicken slightly. Use a third of the frosting to sandwich the cakes together. Spread the remained over the top and sides.

Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar and decorate with chocolate curls.
Hope you enjoy!!!
Good luck!! :)

xoxo
B.

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Caramel Crumble Apple Pie

The weather has finally turned cold..and the first snowflakes have started appearing...Here is a suggestion to warm up on a cold winter late-afternoon...warm caramel crumble apple pie with ice cream and butterscotch sauce...Mmm..yiamee...;)
We'll need:
For the pie crust:
200 gr. cold butter in small pieces
300 gr. all-purpose flour
100 gr. fine sugar (you can use light brown one too)
1 large egg
For the filling:
3 apples thinly sliced (you can also cut them in small cubes)
80 gr. raisins or dried cranberries
A few crushed butter candies (like Werthers Original)
For the crumble:
100 gr. chopped walnuts
200 gr. biscuit crumbs (i used digestive)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 fullspoon of butter
Preparation:
You sieve the flour and mix it well with the butter. Mix it with your hands until well blended. Then add the sugar and the egg until well combined into a dough. Gather it into a ball, cover it with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to rest and become firm enough. Careful not to mould it a lot.
After it has chilled enough, take it out of the fridge and place it on a lightly floured surface. Roll the pastry into a circle and transfer it to a round tart baking pan. Trim the edges to fit the pan. With a fork pinch the tart to remove the air. Put baking paper on top and some legumes, so that your tart keeps its shape. Bake it in preheated oven for about 15 minutes at 180 C.
Meanwhile, prepare the filling.

Take the tart out of the oven. Mix the sliced apples with the raisins or the cranberries and the butter candies and spread on the tart. Mix the biscuit crumbs, the walnuts, the cinnamon and the butter and spread on top of the apples.
Bake for about 40-45 mins at 180C until golden.

Serve with vanilla or caramel ice-cream and butterscotch sauce.

For the sauce put 120 gr. butter candies and 5 spoonfuls light cream in a pan until they melt.

Hope you enjoy!!!!
Good luck!!
xoxo
B.

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Chocolate and almond cookies

And since I had the oven warm, I decided to make another kind of cookies as well..;)
Ingredients:
125 gr. softened butter

100 gr. light brown sugar

½ tsp vanilla essence

1 egg lightly beaten

200 gr. all-purpose flour

½ tsp baking powder

100 gr. coarsely chopped almonds

125 gr. chopped dark chocolate

Preparation:

Beat the butter with the sugar and the vanilla until light and fluffy. Add the egg. With the mixer at low speed add the sieved flour and baking powder.

Fold in the almonds and the chocolate.

Roll in small balls and bake for about 15 mins at 180 C.

Good luck!!!

xoxo

B.

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Prune cookies

Helloooo everyone!!! :)
I like staying in on Sundays and getting involved with the kitchen..So, I decided to try some new cookies..Ths ure thing is that the house smelled amazingly!!!! Yiammee...
Start preparing ladies...and gentlemen..;)
Ingredients:

115 gr. softened butter

200 gr. light brown sugar

2 eggs

½ tsp vanilla essence

200 gr. all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp ground cloves

1 cup raisins

1 cup coarsely chopped prunes

1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Preparation:

We beat the butter with the sugar until light and fluffy. We add the eggs one by one and the vanilla beating until well mixed.

In another bowl sieve the flour, the baking soda, the salt and the spices. Add to the butter mixture and keep beating at low speed until well combined.

With a spoon fold in the raisins, the walnuts and the prunes.

Put small spoonfuls on baking pans (prepared with parchment paper) and bake for about 10 mins at 180 C.

Leave about 5 cm distance between the cookies cause they tend to spread..

Good luck!!

xoxo

B.

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Tiramisu

Hello my dear ones!! :)
One more day till New Year's Eve...One more year left behind...And it's time for that tiramisu recipe..Mmm..yiammeee...I made this for Christmas and everyone loved it..;)
The original italian recipe of tiramisu has eggs inside. I made it without them, firstly because i'm a little afraid of eating raw eggs, because of salmonella and secondly because i thought it would be healthier and even people with cholesterol problems could eat it!!
So, we'll need:
A pack of savoiardi or lady fingers
250 gr mascarpone cheese
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp coffee liquer (you can also use brandy or black rum..I used the second).
150 ml espresso in room temperature
150 lm cream milk
4 tbsp icing sugar
Cocoa powder for dusting
Preparation:
Beat the mascarpone with the sugar until fluffy. Add the vanilla, the brandy and 50 ml of the espresso until well blended.
In another bowl beat the cream until smooth and fluffy and fold in the mascarpone mix.
Pour the remaining coffee with 1 tbsp of liquer in a small bowl. Take one sponge finger at a time and dip it in the coffee for just 1 second.
Line the fingers on one side in little bowls (break them if you need), or in martini glasses or in a pan.
Spoon the mascarpone mix on top. Repeat one more time, so that you'll have two lines of sponge fingers with cream in between.
Refrigerate.
Before serving dust the cocoa powder.
Hope you enjoy!! :)

Good luck!!
xoxo
B.

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Walnut Chocolate Cookies

Lazy Sunday afternoon...Shops were open today...So, after some window shopping and a little rest, I'm getting ready for my coffee time with good friends..:)
And what's better than warm home baked cookies to accompany a hot cup of cappuccino??
Ingredients:
50gr. milk butter
190gr. butter
200gr. brown sugar
3 medium eggs, preferrably bio
450gr. all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
30gr. cocoa powder
1 full tbsp honey
150gr. chopped chocolate (i put half bitter and half white)
100gr. chopped walnuts
Preparation:
We beat the sugar with the butter until fluffy.

We add the eggs, one at a time, and keep beating. We add the flour, the soda, the cocoa and the honey and mix well. Then, we add the chocolate and the walnuts and fold the mixture with a spoon. (You can do it with clean hands too).

We put small spoonfuls on a baking sheet (size of a walnut), and bake in preheated oven at 160C for 8-10mins.

Mmmm...enjoy...:)

Good luck!!
xoxo
B.

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Devil's Food Cake - Chocoholic's heaven!! :)

allyou

Temperature's dropping and i'm in mood for some chocolate!! So..what's better than a devil's food cake?? :)
Recipe from Golden Book of Baking
I know that it might seem too difficult to you, but trust me..it's not and the result is absolutely rewarding!!! ;)
You can make as many layers of cake and frosting as you like!!
Ingredients:
For the cake
3/4 cup(120gr) unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup(125ml) boiling water
2 cups (300gr) all purpose flour
2 tsps baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup (180gr) butter
2 cups (400gr) sugar
2 tsps vanilla extract
1 tbsp chocolate or coffee liqueur
2 large eggs
1 cup (250ml) buttermilk
For the frosting
250 gr chopped dark chocolate
1 1/2 cups (375gr) butter
6 large egg yolks
1 cup (200gr) sugar
12/ cup (125 ml) water
2 tsps vanilla extract
Preparation:
Stir the cocoa and water in a bowl until smooth. In another bowl mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Beat the butter, sugar, vanilla and liquer in the mixer at high speed until creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until well blended. With mixer in low speed, gradually add the dry ingredients alternating with the buttermilk and the cocoa mixture. Spoon the batter into two buttered 23cm round cake pans, lined with buttered parchment paper. Bake for 30-40 mins to preheated oven at 180 C. Cool the cakes in the pans for 10 mins. Turn out onto racks. Carefully remove the paper and let cool completely.
Prepare the frosting. Melt the chocolate in a bain marie. Let cool. Beat the butter until creamy. Beat the egg yolks in another bowl until pale in color. Place the sugar and water in a medium saucepan over low heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved and the syrup is boiling. Wash down the sides of the pan with a pastry brush dipped in cold water to prevent sugar crystals from forming. Cook, without stirring, until the syruo reaches 112 C or the soft-ball stage. Remove from heat. Beat the syrup into the egg yolks in a slow, steady stream until cool. Gradually beat in the butter. Beat in the chocolate and vanilla. Place one cake on a serving plate. Spread with one'-third of the frosting. Top with the remaining cake and spread with the remaining frosting.

Good luck!!
xoxo
B.

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Christmas sugar cookies

marthastewart

Mmm..let's bake some delicious little xmas sugar cookies!!! :) Hope you enjoy!!
Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups (230gr) all purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup (113gr) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup (150gr) granulated white sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
For the royal icing:
1 large egg white
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 cups (165gr) confectioner's sifted sugar
Preparation:
In a bowl whisk together the flour, salt and baking powder and set aside.
In another bowl beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla extract and beat until well combined. Add the flour mixture and beat until you have a smooth dough.
Divide in half and wrap each half in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for about an hour until firm enough to roll.
Preheat the oven to 177 C. Line two baking sheets with baking paper.
Remove one half of the dough from the refrigerator and on a lightly floured surface roll out the dough to a thickness of 1 cm. Cut out cookies with lightly floured cookie cutters of whatever shape you like and transfer cookies to the baking sheet. Put the baking sheets with the unbaked cookies in the refrigerator for 10 to 15 minutes to chill the dough which prevents the cookies from spreading and losing their shape.
Bake for about 10 mins or until they begin to brown around the edges.
Let the cookies cool for a few minutes before transfering to a wire rack to cool completely. Frost with royal icing if desired. Be sure to let the royal icing dry before storing.

For the royal icing, beat the egg whites with the lemon juice. Add the sifted sugar and beat on low speed until combined and smooth. The icing needs to be used immediately or transfered to an airtight container as it hardens when exposed to air. Cover with plastic wrap when not in use.

Good luck!!
xoxo
B.

Source: joyofbaking

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Gingerbread People

MarthaStewart.com

Christmas baking wouldn't be complete without a batch of these cute Gingerbread Men. They are fragrant with ground ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves; the amount of which can be adjusted to suit your own individual taste. If you like your Gingerbread Men on the soft side, bake them a little less than the recipe states as the longer they bake the harder they will become. There are a few ways to decorate your Gingerbread Men; one is to press raisins into the dough before baking, or you can frost the baked and cooled cookies with confectioners' frosting. You can also use Gingerbread Men as decorations for your Christmas tree or as gift tags. To do this, pierce a hole in the top of each unbaked cookie using a straw or end of a wooden skewer. Bake the cookies and then thread a pretty ribbon through the hole and hang on your tree. 

Ingredients:

3 cups (390 gr) all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoons salt

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 cup (113 gr) unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup (100 gr) granulated white sugar

1 large egg

2/3 cup (160 ml) unsulphured molasses (To prevent molasses from sticking to the measuring cup, first spray the cup with a non stick vegetable spray.)

Confectioners Frosting:

2 cups (230 gr) confectioners sugar (icing or powdered sugar), sifted

1/2 cup (113gr) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 tablespoons milk or light cream

Assorted food colors (if desired)

Preparation:

In a large bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, and spices. 

In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and molasses and beat until well combined. Gradually add the flour mixture beating until incorporated.

Divide the dough in half, and wrap each half in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours or overnight. 

Preheat oven to 177 degrees C and place rack in center of oven. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside while you roll out the dough.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to a thickness of about 1/4 inch. Use a gingerbread cutter to cut out the cookies.  With an offset spatula lift the cut out cookies onto the baking sheet, placing the cookies about 1 inch (2.54 cm) apart. If you are hanging the cookies or using as gift tags, make a hole at the top of the cookies with a straw or end of a wooden skewer.

Bake for about 8 - 12 minutes depending on the size of the cookies. Small ones will take about 8 minutes, larger cookies will take about 12 minutes. They are done when they are firm and the edges are just beginning to brown. 

Remove the cookies from the oven and cool on the baking sheet for about 1 minutes. When they are firm enough to move, transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

If desired, you can press raisins, currants, or candies into the dough for eyes and buttons while the cookies are still warm. Otherwise, confectioners frosting can be used to decorate the cookies. You can also use the icing as a glue to attach candies, raisins, and sprinkles.

Confectioners Frosting: In an electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), cream the butter until smooth and well blended.  Add the vanilla extract. With the mixer on low speed, gradually beat in the sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beater. Add the milk and beat on high speed until frosting is light and fluffy (about 3-4 mins). Add a little more milk if too dry.

Place the frosting in a pastry bag fitted with a decorative tip and decorate the gingerbread men as desired. Tint portions of frosting with desired food color.

Makes about 3 dozen cookies depending on the size of cookie cutter used.

Store in an airtight container.

Source: joyofbaking.com

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Mmmm….marshmallows…

It's a festive season...so marshmallows and candies are a must!! :-)

Besides..they are sooo easy to make!

We’ll need:

400 gr. Sugar

400 gr. Water

4 gelatin leaves (20gr.)

Confectioner’s sugar for coating

Preparation:

We boil the sugar with the water for 5 minutes. We add the gelatin leaves after we have softened them in cold water, we stir and take off the fire. After the mixture cools down we beat it in the mixer until becomes white and tight like meringue.

On a baking paper we spread confectioner’s sugar and on top our mixture 1-2 cm thick. We sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar, let it for a few hours outside the fridge to become stable (a whole night would be preferable), we cut into small squares and coat with sugar again.

If we want, while we beat the mixture in the mixer we can color it with a few drops of candy color!!

Slourp!! Hope you enjoy!!

Good luck!

Xoxo

B.

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Greek Christmas Sugar Buns

Another one of Greece’s traditional Christmas dessert is sugar buns!! We call them "kourabiedes".

Ingredients:

600 gr. Milk butter

250 gr. Almonds

½ tsp baking powder

1 pinch of vanilla

220 gr. Confectioner’s sugar

50 gr. Black rum

1.200 gr flour

Confectioner’s sugar for topping

Preparation:

We beat the butter with the sugar in high speed for about 20 mins.(The more we beat them the best the mixture will become).

We roughly chop the almonds after we have baked them at 160 C until they become golden and have spread them on baking paper.

We add the flour, the baking and the vanilla in the beaten butter slowly. We add the almonds and then the rum. We keep beating for another 10 mins. We mould the buns in round shapes of 3mm diameter.

We bake in preheated oven at 170 C for 15-20 mins. We take them out of the oven, let them cool very well and deepen them in the sugar.

We place them in a large plate in a pile and sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar.

Tip: Be careful to use good quality butter!! It makes all the difference!! ;-)

Hope you enjoy them!!

Good luck!!

Xoxo

B.

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