For as long as I can remember I’ve helped my mother bake. I must’ve been 4 or 5 when I first recall standing on a kitchen stool and mixing butter, sugar eggs and flour to make a cake. The best part of “helping” my mom make cakes, [...]]]>

For as long as I can remember I’ve helped my mother bake. I must’ve been 4 or 5 when I first recall standing on a kitchen stool and mixing butter, sugar eggs and flour to make a cake. The best part of “helping” my mom make cakes, was licking the spoon, and the bowl, after the batter was poured into the pan.

I never had the patience to wait for a cake to be completely cooled. And honestly, I liked her cakes better when they were still slightly warm. Even though my mom told me not to cut the cake before it had cooled, I could hardly ever hold myself back.

I’d guess I was about 8 or 9 when I baked my first cake on my own. Using my mother’s trusted recipe for cake (equal parts flour, sugar and butter and a number of eggs and flavoring) I really didn’t need her help anymore.

My mom’s cake recipe was probably the only recipe I used until I moved out. The only other recipes I knew existed, were my friends’ mothers’ cakes that were made from a boxed mix.

In the years since I’ve moved out from my mother’s house, I’ve experimented with many many more recipes. Some have worked, and some have failed. Most of them have been recipes I found online and altered. Some were written down on envelopes, or scraps of paper. I don’t know the origin of most of my cake recipes, but I know exactly which ones I like, and which ones need some improvements.

The second time I met (and went to visit) Laurens’ parents was quite a while ago, but I still recall the cake I brought. Laurens had failed to inform/ask his parents about us visiting, so he called the evening before we planned to go. His mom was happy about having us over, but told him ‘I don’t even have a cake to serve you’. After the phone call I asked what was up (my understanding of Italian back then was worse than the despicable state it’s in now) and he laughed and mentioned the cake.

I went to rummage in our kitchen to see what ingredients I had available. I proceeded to google ‘chocolate hazelnut cake’ and found a plethora of recipes.

The recipe I chose was easy enough to make and seemed tasty. The next morning, before we left for the in-laws, I baked a cake.

The cake turned out to be wonderful. The ground hazelnuts in combination with the almond extract and chocolate gave it something different. The cake in itself was full in taste and moist. My in-laws were at first confused about me bringing a cake – hey, they hadn’t gotten used to my food obsession back then – but very enthusiastic once they tasted it.

Since that date, I’ve brought them more goodies. They don’t look all that surprised anymore when, instead of flowers, I present them with something I’ve prepared myself.

Recently I remembered that cake. I hadn’t made it since that first time, but I had all the ingredients and a free hour on my hands. The cake was still wonderful.

As always – if you’re certain you know who’s/which recipe I wrote down that fateful day, please let me know so I can credit them appropriately!

Now I realize that making cheesecake a second time isn’t really an accomplishment worth [...]]]> I’ve written about my first ever attempt at making and eating cheesecake. How it was a huge success and I suddenly realized I like cheesecake. Well, I’ve done it again.

Now I realize that making cheesecake a second time isn’t really an accomplishment worth tooting your own horn about, however, I improved my recipe.

I’ve improved it so much, that it would be mean not to share it.

See, my cheesecake is one with chocolate, caramel and nuts. Recently, while browsing through a bunch of other blogs, I read about someone using chocolate chip cookies instead of graham crackers for her crust. It sounded like a grand idea. A grand idea which could however be improved.

How about using chocolate chip cookie dough for the crust. Unbaked cookie cough as a bottom and up the side, filling it with cheesecake batter and baking it to creamy delight.

And then, while I was working on my cheesecake (and running back to the store for some forgotten ingredients – it was quite the weekend for forgotten ingredients) I decided to alter the cheesecake batter as well.

See last time, while the cake was very tasty, it was also the slightest bit tangy. Not unpleasant, but I figured that taking that tang out would make it even creamier and smoother. Turns out that (for a chocolate/nuts/caramel cheesecake) I was right. I think I’ve achieved my ultimate cheesecake batter. I don’t think I will, or should, ever alter it one bit. Until I find more improvements that is!

Because google recipes code and/or this plugin and/or maybe even this latest version of wordpress doesn’t work correctly, I’ll first give you the links to the recipes you need to complete your ingredient list:

• chocolate chip cookie dough
• caramel sauce
• ganache

This recipe is also linked up from Sweet as sugar cookies. Check out the other sweet treats posted there!

Since we wanted to visit Laurens’ parents, who had just [...]]]> Laurens and I both had a 4-day weekend last week. Thursday was a nationally observed holiday in the Netherlands, and I had Friday off. Laurens decided to take Friday off as well, so we could have a nice long weekend together.

Since we wanted to visit Laurens’ parents, who had just returned from Italy, we figured we could finally go to the ‘Drunense Duinen’, a National Park near his parents town. The Drunense Duinen are beautiful. They are natural sand dunes in the middle of dry land. No water in sight. The only big problem in the Drunense Duinen is that nature is doing too well. Trees and bushes that aren’t supposed to grow in dunes have been thriving and a very large part of this amazing dune-land has been overgrown with forests. The preservation societies are actually cutting down trees there, to preserve nature. It’s a strange phenomenon.

I had never been to the Drunense Duinen before. We figured we’d walk around and grab something to eat and drink there, when I realized that I have a beautiful antique style picnic basket that I’d never even used. A picnic it would be.

My requirements for our picnic were simple. The foods needed to be easy enough to make and eat; filling enough to last us during a walk through the dunes and forest; and able to keep well during transportation.

I settled on wraps and sandwiches for our main lunch. Some hummus and bread and small baggies of chips to nibble on as sides, and chocolate-almond cupcakes for dessert. I baked the cupcakes the evening before and had a hard time not eating them before we left.

For the wraps I spread a layer of pesto over an entire tortilla, then added some thick slices of smoked chicken breast. I cut up sun-dried tomatoes and finished off with a good handful of rocket before rolling the tortilla, cutting it in half and placing it in it’s container.

The sandwich I made was a very simple roast beef and blue cheese sandwich. I got some nice, crusty white bread, sliced it in half and spread the bottom half with a thin layer of horseradish. Then thin-sliced roast beef was generously piled up and the sandwich was topped with a good dose of crumbled blue cheese. I cut the sandwich in half (so we could share) and wrapped it in plastic. Salt and pepper, slices of tomato, shredded lettuce and a drizzle of olive oil were packaged separately and added right before eating to prevent the sandwich from getting all soggy during the hour-and-a-half drive to the dunes.

I cut up some leftover bread to go with the hummus and packed everything with some ice packs in my beautiful picnic basket.

Once we got to the Drunense Duinen we quickly spread out our blanket on the sand, in the shade under a tree and enjoyed our picnic. The food held up wonderful during the trip. Everything was super easy to make and tasty to eat. I know lots of people think food tastes better when eaten outdoors, but I can honestly say these wraps and sandwiches would’ve been just as great when eaten at a table.