Rum & Raisin Tiramisu

125g raisins , 250ml dark rum, 6 egg yolks, 110g caster sugar, 500g mascarpone, 185ml orange juice, 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract, 1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped, 24 sponge fingers, Shaved chocolate, to serve

Heat raisins and 2 tablespoons rum in a pan over medium-low heat until just warm. Cool. 
Beat yolks and sugar until thick and pale. Mix in mascarpone, 1/2 cup (125ml) rum, 1/4 cup (60ml) orange juice, vanilla extract and scraped vanilla seeds. Combine remaining 85ml rum and 1/2 cup (125ml) juice in a bowl.
Dip 12 sponge fingers in rum mixture and arrange in a single layer in a 1.5L trifle dish. Top with one-third of the mascarpone mixture and half the raisins, then repeat. Top with a final layer of mascarpone. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 6 hours. Sprinkle with chocolate to serve.

Chicken & sweetcorn egg-fried rice

1 tbsp sunflower oil, 3 eggs, beaten with some seasoning, 320g pack mixed stir-fry vegetables, 1 tbsp mild curry powder, 140g frozen sweetcorn, 600g cooked rice see, 1 roasted chicken breast, finely shredded, 2 tbsp low-salt soy sauce, 2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce, 2 tbsp ketchup

Heat a splash of oil in a large frying pan and tip in the beaten eggs. Swirl the pan to coat in a thin layer of egg and cook for a few mins until set. Tip onto a chopping board, roll up, slice thinly and set aside.
Heat a little more oil, add the stir-fry veg, curry powder and sweetcorn with a splash of water. Cook for 1-2 mins until the veg starts to wilt, then tip into a bowl. Add the last of the oil to the pan, tip in the rice and chicken, mix well, then add the soy sauce, sweet chilli, ketchup, a splash of water and some black pepper.
Finally, add the eggs and the veg, toss together and heat through until hot. Tip into bowls and serve immediately.

Fudge mit Cranberrys

150 gr dark chocolate, 150 gr milk chocolate, 100 gr flake almonds, 100 gr dried cranberries, 1 package pistachios, 1 can of condensed milk (400 ml)

Lightly grease the baking dish and line it with freezer bags. Cut the chocolates in small pieces. Set aside 1 tablespoon of almonds, cranberries and pistachios for sprinkling.

Heat the condensed milk in a pot, but do not boil. Stir the chocolate and leave it to melt.  Add the almonds, cranberries and pistachios. Pour everything into the mold and sprinkle over the fruits set aside. Leave it overnight in the fridge to harden. Cut fudge into large pieces and serve as desired in paper cups.

Rea Garvey - It's a good life

Can't wait for the 4th to see him live ;)

First Food Bloggers Conference

Today I attended my first Food Bloggers Conference... and it was amazing: the opportunity to see and meet some of the food bloggers that I followed for years, to learn some new tricks for food photography, and just to hang out with some amazing people.

Hearing Mazilique's funny stories or meeting Cookie Jar were the highlights..
And I was quite impressed with Lidl, no wonder is my favourite supermarket to shop.

What can I say: it's a great beginning, to many more from now on!

The Script - No Good in Goodbye

Hey, no kissing!

Carrot cake Geami style

Hmmm, carrot cake? No chocolate? No way I'll eat it...

But I've tried one slice in Berlin and I totally looved it, so I decided to give it a try.

And the result?

Amaaazing! It's one of my favourite cakes now.

Thank you Geami from Cooku-Bau for the recipe.

For the cake: 100g pecans, 125g flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon salt, 200ml Vegetable Oil, 100ml milk, 30g butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 4 large eggs, 200g sugar, 500g carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped

For frosting: 225g soft butter, 450g cream cheese, 1 tablespoon vanilla extract, 250g caster sugar

Preheat oven to high power. Coat with baking paper two round shapes, about 22 cm diameter.

Fry pecans in a pan without oil. Let them cool and then finely grind them.

In a bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. In another bowl, mix well with a whisk the vegetable oil, 30g butter, the milk and vanilla extract. Using a mixer, beat the eggs well with sugar for 5 minutes. Add liquid ingredients and continue to mix. Add flour mix and mix gently. Add carrots and nuts. Share composition in two, between the two pans, and bake it on medium heat for 1 hour. Allow dough to cool in molds for 30 minutes.

Prepare the frosting. With a mixer, mix well at higher speed, cream, butter and cheese, for 5 minutes. Add vanilla and powdered sugar, continuing to mix at low speed until smooth. Then increase the speed and mixed for an additional 3 minutes.

Mount cake. Put one of the cakes on a large plate. Pour over it the cream cheese mixture. Put the second cake on top and pour the remaining cream cheese. Decorate with nuts and leave it in the refrigerator at least one hour before serving.