At the very bottom there is a layer of lightly spiced sautéed apples. Then goes strawberry puree, followed by Frangelico-spiked whipped cream and, finally, crispy buttery hazelnut crisp. The recipe, with some of my adaptations, is from the Top Chef cookbook.

The delicious and exceptionally easy to put together, originally served with fresh strawberries, this parfait is a perfect transitional summer-autumn dessert. But since the summer time, as well as good fresh berries, has well passed, I replaced the fresh strawberries with the puree made from the frozen ones (but picked at their most ripe). The dish was great; I think it’s very much appropriate for any season.

And now I want to return to the book mentioned earlier. This book and a Top Chef 7” Japanese style Santoku knife are for you to win. For the fans of the show, the fifth season of the Emmy-award winning series Top Chef DVD has been recently released and it includes extended interviews and some never-before-seen material.

I believe everyone knows the drill. You leave a comment on this post before midnight (PST) December 17th and I will make the draw and ask the winner to e-mail me the postal address for the goodies to ship. Good Luck!

Continue with the recipe »

Son: “What’s for dessert, mum?”
Mum: “Uh… fresh raspberries, perhaps? You see, your mum has been very busy reading your Harry Potter book left so hastily right in her view…” (and now this mum is worrying if a dreadful regressing back-to-her-childhood process has already begun, since she’s found the particular book of yours quite fascinating indeed)
Son: “It won’t suffice… I was hoping for something else…” (the kid is obviously spoiled)
Mum: “Raspberry and chocolate clafouti then?”
Son: “Umm… dunno… but it sounds interesting!” (it sure does in mum’s so perfect French)
And so they’ve settled.

Clafouti is one of the easiest desserts to fix. It’s French in origin, usually made with cherries (stones within). As per my dad’s description, the clafouti is like a sweetened omelet (he wasn’t very fond of this dessert, to be honest). Well, it’s not exactly the omelet. It’s a baked custard, thickened with just a bit of flour to make it sliceable later (you will need to slice it if you bake the clafouti in a large pie pan). I think it’s rustically nice, and easy, and versatile. You can use apricots, peaches, plums, pears, any berry you like or have on hand.

Continue with the recipe »

I’m gravitating to the comfort food lately that can be informally spooned from a bowl while sitting on a sofa and watching Sponge Bob with the kid. I know I will pay the price later exhausting myself with some sort of diet and pilates. This is the food my personal fitness trainer (if I had one) wouldn’t probably approve. But you have to give your soul what it’s asking for… right? I’ll deal with the consequences later, when the spring comes. Or summer.

Continue with the recipe »

Don’t be surprised it wasn’t served with ice cream. See, I need to shed a couple of pounds here – I am trying to squeeze into this party dress by the end of the month. So, the dish is basically my diet food – less fat, more vitamins. If you are favoring traditional views you can top the crumble with a scoop of vanilla or orange ice cream. But the yogurt actually turned out pretty tasty, and it was good with the crumble, as well as on its own.

Does anybody else think that food blogging has an inevitable weight-gaining side-effect?

Continue with the recipe »

Here’s a cross between a rice pudding and flan. Don’t make it if you don’t like either from the aforementioned above. But if you are a fan of both, you might find this cake interesting. I served it with very ripe peaches and whipped cream, but almost any fruit or berries will go nicely.

The recipe adapted from Lori Longbotham “Luscious creamy desserts”.

Continue with the recipe »

This is a kind of dessert I’m the most fond of – rustic, homey, full of flavors, and incredibly easy to prepare. Don’t try to serve the pudding on its own, serve it with roasted grapes as intended. They are meant for each other providing so desirable contrast of sweet and sour, smooth and crunchy. For Russian readers of my blog (I know for sure there are at least two) – the texture of the pudding is similar to Russian “zapekanka”, but it’s sweeter since the ricotta cheese is way less tangy compared to tvorog (Russian curd cheese).

This is an adaptation of the latest “Gourmet” recipe. I prepared and served the pudding in individual shallow pans, each is about 4-inch wide and near ¾ -cup capacity. You can bake the pudding in a 9-inch pie-plate and serve it cut into wedges as it was suggested in the magazine.

Continue with the recipe »