Desserts | Be Nutritious

Nigella’s Nutella Cake (Gluten Free)

Yesterday was my boyfriend’s birthday so I decided to make this fantastic, rich nutella cake. I found the recipe few months ago on the cooking godess Nigella Lawson’s page and I was just waiting for a perfect opportunity to make it. I’m guessing birthday is a quite good opportunity

They cake is very rich with a strong chocolate flavor and even though it is gluten free (flourless), it’s far from healthy. But cakes are not supposed to be healthy and once a while everyone needs to indulge a bit. I know some nutritionists are very strict about the diet but I am not. I won’t say “no” to a piece of cake on an occasion.

The cake was great and I followed Nigella’s recipe however I did some adjustments. Nigella only uses unsweetened dark chocolate and no sugar at all (except already sweet Nutella of course), but to me it was way too bitter with a pure dark chocolate (I had to add a lot of sugar) so I recommend using semi-sweet chocolate instead and don’t worry about possible bitterness.

Another thing is that I was not able to use the whole frosting, only half of it. I’m giving here amounts from Nigella’s original recipe but you’ll probably be fine if you’ll cut ingredients for the glaze in half. Also the cooking time is 40 min but it took me 50-55 min for the cake to be done so rather than sticking to exactly 40 min, check doneness by inserting a toothpick in the middle. If it comes out dry and the cake starts sticking out from the edges, it should be ready.

Ingredients:

Cake:

6 large eggs, separated

Pinch of salt

1/2 cup softened, unsalted butter

1 x 13 oz Nutella jar

1/2 cup ground hazelnuts

4 oz melted semi-sweet chocolate

9 inch round cake tin

Topping:

4 oz semi-sweet chocolate

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup hazelnuts

Start with separating the eggs. Beat the softened butter with the egg yolks, nutella and cooled melted chocolate.
Mix in ground hazelnuts.
In a separate clean bowl, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff.
Gently beat in (in parts) the egg whites into the chocolate mixture.
Pour into buttered 9 inch round cake tin and bake 40-50 min in the oven preheated to 350 degrees F. Check doneness with a toothpick inserted in the middle. Dry toothpick means the cake is ready.
Gently remove from the tin and let it cool. The top of the cake will fall a little bit.
Now prepare the topping. Roast whole hazelnuts on a dry skillet. Make sure not to burn them. Wrap hot hazelnuts in a clean kitchen cloth and rub them vigorously to peel the skin.
Now heat heavy cream in a pot and melt chocolate in it.
When both cake and glaze have cooled a bit, pour glaze all over the top of the cake. Decorate with cooled, roasted hazelnuts.

Lemon Bundt Cake

Ever since I remember I was crazy about lemon cakes. I never cared much for the chocolate ones but those flavored with lemon caused me to drool all over. This cake is exceptionally easy to make. It took me only 1 hour to finish since the moment I started mixing the ingredients to the moment I had a nice piece of warm cake in my mouth. The cake has strong lemon flavor, is just about right sweet and is incredibly soft and moist. When I took it out of the oven I was really scared that it came out to dry because it was browned more than I expected, however the inside is very delicate, fluffy and flavorful.

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Honey Pecan Pie

How was your Thanksgiving? I spent mine in Poland where obviously we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, so no days off, no turkey, no pumpkin pie for us. However since I love all kinds of holidays I had to at least prepare some kind of traditional Thanksgiving treat for my family. I brought with me from US few packages of pecans, which by the way turned out to be extremely similar in taste and appearance to walnuts, and I prepared a pecan pie. My version is slightly different because instead of corn syrup I used honey and I added a bit of a liquor to my filling. I also used less sugar because in my opinion traditional pecan pie is way too sweet. What can I say, everyone loved it, it was very unusual kind of cake for Polish standards because we don’t usually make pies like this. That was definitely something new for my family.

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Carrot-Pumpkin Cake

Halloween wouldn’t be a Halloween if there was no pumpkin cake. My version is a combination of both pumpkin and carrot cake. I didn’t want to make a traditional pumpkin cake because certain person in this household is not very fond of all those pumpkin spices so I did not want to take a risk and be left with a huge cake to be eaten just by myself. My figure would never forgive me that. However carrot-pumpkin cake is much more mellow and universal so everyone will like it. It’s still rich in flavor but not overpowered with spices. Thanks to using cake flour, the texture is very light and combination of carrot and pumpkin makes it very moist. It’s funny because people that never tasted carrot or pumpkin cake think that it’s going to taste like veggies which is not a case at all. When I told my dad what kind of cake I am making he just made a grimace. Surprisingly even my boyfriend loved it and it was also his first time eating ‘veggie’ cake. He even took almost half of it to share at his workplace. Wow it made me so happy, I love sharing my dishes with people and since we don’t have family around it doesn’t happen to often.

The recipe I used comes from Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook. I modified it though. The recipe called only for carrots and all purpose flour. I cut the amount of carrots in half and used pumpkin pure instead plus I substituted A.P. flour for cake flour. Unfortunately due to technical difficulties I wasn’t able to add step by step photos as I usually do. I have to admit (shame) that they didn’t come out exactly as I thought they would. I used orange bowl for mixing and the mixture was also orange so all the colors just fused and it simply looked gross. Really gross. Nevertheless the final result came out looking and tasting fabulous.

By the way, next week I am leaving my love and Miami for over a month. I’m going home to visit my family in Poland and that’s where I’ll be doing doing my cooking meanwhile so prepare for some of the regional dishes such as pierogi and borscht.

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Pumpkin Muffins

In the middle of October pumpkin season is at its peak. No matter where you go, everything is decorated with a vibrant orange color and pumpkin lanterns glow in storefronts. Saying goodbye to summer can be quite depressing but Halloween season with its omnipresent pumpkin really soothes down pain associated with cold weather. Markets are full of delicious pumpkin treats such as pumpkin pie or muffins. Pumpkin muffins or cupcakes are probably the most common Halloween treats and definitely my favorite treats to make. Beautifully colored and spiced with ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg make a fantastic after dinner snack or breakfast. As a matter of fact I like to eat my muffins either as an after breakfast snack or in the afternoon with a cup of hot latte. No matter what time of a day you like to treat yourself with sweets, you’ll be very rewarded because they taste and look scrumptious.

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European Style Apple Pie

Whenever I go back in my mind to the times before I left my country, I see my family on Sunday afternoon, gathered by the table and eating a traditional three course meal. The soup and the main course were often different so we wouldn’t get bored with the same thing over and over but the dessert was usually the same each week, szarlotka. Szarlotka which is a Polish name for the apple pie, is a cake that originated in France but nowadays is mostly eaten in Austria and Poland. It’s different than it’s American and British version because no whole apples are used. Apples are first grated and simmered on a low heat to reduce their juices and then they are added to the pie and baked. In many quick versions of a pie, ready made applesauce is used instead of fresh apples.

Apple pie is an ideal companion for an afternoon coffee and usually adults like it more than children. The reason for that might be due to the fact that no cream or chocolate is used and it is not overwhelmingly sweet. As a matter of fact it is very much like a tart and the pastry is very delicate and crisp. In my version, I first grated the pastry and then shaped it to fit the dish. I found this technique to be easier than rolling, besides in this case the dough really didn’t need to be rolled out like for a tart.

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Strawberry Crumble

I love strawberries, to me they’re the kings of fruits. Well maybe together with blueberries and raspberries (I guess I’m a berry type of a girl). Sweet and juicy, they fit to almost any dessert recipe. I can never get enough of them especially now when they’re in season and are the most flavorful. I can’t believe that I haven’t made any dish with them yet but my palate preferences are more savory rather than sweet so desserts are not my first priority. I don’t eat much sweets and don’t really go crazy for them. Even in the restaurants I barely ever order desserts. I have my sugar cravings every now and then but they’re usually temporary and last no more than 2-3 days. After that I completely forget about sweets for the next few weeks. However fruity desserts like pies or crumbles are an exception. I adore them much more than any chocolate cakes or cookies. Even my favorite ice cream flavors are fruity. I remember my favorite dessert as a kid was apple or cherry pie and even now if I had to choose between a pie and a most sophisticated cake, I would go for the pie.

Crumble is an excellent dessert for the beginning bakers because it is ridiculously easy to prepare and there is no way to spoil it. All you have to do is to mix few ingredients and transfer into a baking dish. Whole preparation process shouldn’t take you more than 5-8 min and the best thing is that when you take it out of the oven you have a big pan of fabulously bubbly, juicy fruits with a golden crunch on a top. The best way to serve it is to add a scoop or two of ice cram and cover with a big spoonful of this delicious crumble.

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Lemon Poppy Swirls

So far that was the easiest recipe I’ve made, no thinking and no cooking skills required. I actually started making it yesterday night. I got my evening sugar cravings but did not feel like eating just chocolate. I opened the freezer and took out puff pastry dough but still wasn’t sure what to do with that. Then I remembered that I had poppy seed filling hidden in my pantry. It’s been sitting there for a while waiting for me to come up with some idea to use it. So I did come up with an idea, I combined it with puff pasty and topped with some delicious lemon icing.

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Vegan Blueberry Muffins

Oh what a mission it was to prepare these muffins. I really wanted them to be healthy with as little fat and white flour as possible so the first time I made them I used mostly whole wheat flour and just a little bit of vegetable oil. The result was a disaster, flat, dry muffins that did not raise at all. I decided that next time I’m gonna stick to the more traditional way. I still used whole wheat flour but in smaller proportion and I added 1/4 cup vegetable. This time my muffins came out perfectly moist and they did grow. They do grow more if you use only white flour because white four is not as heavy as whole wheat but at least this way they’re healthier. I also added ground flax seed mixed with water which was a great substitute for an egg.

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Panna Cotta with Raspberry Sauce

panna cotta

Panna Cotta is one of my favorite desserts, well maybe together with creme brulee and fruity desserts. It is easier to make than it looks. The method I’m using is adapted from Jamie Oliver’s recipe. He whips half of the cream so it comes out perfectly smooth and with an ideal consistency. My first attempt to make panna cotta wasn’t very successful, it was more like a milky jello rather than a mousse. Perhaps I added to much of a gelatine alternative. Anyway by doing the simple trick of whipping half of the cream the consistency always comes out perfect, even if you’ll add to much or to little of gelatine.

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