All posts tagged: recipes

My Spinach Dip

Published by Monica

This sauce made it to my all time favorite recipes ever…I used to cook this initially as a dip but then one day I thought ‘why not add pasta and make it a pasta bake’ and that was a brilliant idea! So if you want to make it into a pasta bake just par cook your favorite pasta add it to the sauce, mix well, transfer to an oven proof dish, top with mozzarella and let it cook till nice, bubbly and golden. Many recipes out there that require to put together ingredients in a bowl and then baked in the oven and although that might work just fine I found, in my humble opinion, that when you cook the sauce the outcome is so much better. I make this with fresh spinach, chopped and steamed, I then place them in a sieve for a while and squeeze out all the water before adding them to the sauce. A little tip: you can use mascarpone as cream cheese…delishhh! Ingredients: 1 medium size onion, finely chopped …

Banana Cupcakes

Published by Monica

These cupcakes are ridiculously moist and very rich in flavor. I personally am not a fan of banana in cakes but I was curious to see how the combination of flavors would turn out…needless to say they were insanely delicious!!!!!!! Credits for this recipe go to https://www.handletheheat.com/dulce-de-leche-banana-cupcakes-chocolate-frosting/ I substituted dulce de lece with my homemade caramel and the sour cream with labneh (greek yogurt) which are almost the same thing. Ingredients: For cupcakes: 1 cup all purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 stick butter, at room temperature 1/3 cup of granulated sugar 1/4 cup of light brown sugar 1/4 cup sour cream or labneh 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract 2 large eggs, at room temperature 2 large bananas, smashed 1/2 a cup of dulce de lece or caramel For the frosting: 227 gr cream cheese, at room temperature 57 gr butter, at room temperature 3 cups powder sugar 1/2 cup cocoa Method: For the cupcakes: Preheat oven to 180 C. Line a muffin tray …

Chocolate & Orange Marbled Cake

Published by Monica

Chocolate and orange is a winning combination, it’s one of those things that just works every single time. While baking this cake I discovered the importance of choosing the exact tin size because it really matters. For this cake a 20 cm round cake tin is recommended. If you feel like it’s too small double the recipe and get a bigger tin! Ingredients: 225 gr butter at room temperature 225 gr sugar 4 eggs at room temperature 225 gr self raising flour, sifted 2 tablespoons cocoa powder, sifted Grated zest of 2 big oranges Method: Heat your oven to 180 C. Grease a 20 cm round cake tin. Cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. Then start adding the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Fold in the flour until well combined and divide the mixture in half. Place the other half in a different bowl. Add the cocoa powder into one half and the orange zest into the other half. Put alternate spoons of the chocolate and orange mixtures into …

Mozzarella, Asparagus & Prosciutto Salad

Published by Monica

Nothing screams summer more then a fresh salad. The Asparagus adds a touch of elegant crunch plus the salty prosciutto and sweet mozzarella is a match made in the heavens of my palate. Great to be served if you want to impress your guests! Ingredients: 20 asparagus spears, woody ends cut off 15 slices of prosciutto 1 fresh burrata or buffalo mozzarella, about 200 gr A handful of fresh rocket and mixed green For the dressing: 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil The juice of one lemon 1 garlic clove, crushed A splash of balsamic vinegar, optional Salt and pepper to taste Method: In a frying pan bring to a boil about a cm of water and add the asparagus in a single layer for 3 minutes until tender. Remove from pan and put into ice water for a couple of minutes, drain and set aside. Whisk all the dressing ingredients and set aside. In a serving platter start by layering the greens and rocket, arrange the asparagus, place the burrata in the middle and …

Oat Cookies

Published by Monica

Baking is slowly and steadily becoming a must in my life. These oat cookies are very tasty and although the ingredient list might seem too long they are extremely easy to make…I promise you won’t regret it! Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour 3/4 teaspoon of baking powder 3/4 teaspoon of baking soda 1 teaspoon of cinnamon Pinch of salt Pinch of nutmeg 1 1/4 cup brown sugar 1 stick of butter, melted 1 1/2 tablespoons of honey 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract 3 egg whites, at room temperature 2 cup of good quality oats 1 cup chocolate chips 1 cup walnuts, roughly chopped Method: In a bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer place brown sugar, melted butter, honey, vanilla and egg whites and mix on medium speed until well blended. Stir in the oats, walnuts and chocolate chips, mix with a spoon and set aside for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes stir in the flour mixture and mix well …

Shrimp Linguine My Way

Published by Monica

I love shrimps. I love pasta. Combine them and it’s instant happiness!! Buon Appetito!! Ingredients: 12 medium size fresh shrimps, cleaned with tail on 2 cloves of garlic, chopped 1 chilly, finely chopped 1 glass of white wine Zest of 1 lemon Salt and pepper to taste 200 gr of linguine A bit of parsley for garnish, optional Extra virgin olive oil Method: Prepare all your ingredients. Place a pot of water to boil for the pasta (salted generously) While pasta Is cooking Place a frying pan on medium heat and add the olive oil, garlic and chilly. Fry for a minute and add the shrimps. Cook till pink (be careful not to overcook them). Remove Shrimps from pan and add lemon zest and the wine and let it come together into a light and fragrant sauce. Straight from the pot add the linguine and the shrimps. Let it come together for 2 minutes and serve immediately. Divine!!!!

My Aunties’ Brioche

Published by Monica

Armenians do a variety of sweets for Easter celebration. My favorite, well actually the whole family’s’ favorite, were my Aunties sweet brioche. We used to wait for them and, obviously, wouldn’t last for long. I got the recipe from her when I was very young and I have been making them every year. Now I only make a Kg..she used to make minimum 6 kg…for the whole family. I always make the dough in the evening before going to bed and cover it carefully with many layers of kitchen towels and blankets to keep the warm so it rises properly…its always a joy to wake up the next day to a beautifully fluffy raised dough! I love these with my morning coffee or with fresh lemonade. Ingredients: 1 kg all purpose flour, sieved 6 eggs, at room temperature, plus extra to glaze 1 cup melted butter 1 cup milk 1 1/3 cup sugar 2 tablespoons of yeast 1 teaspoon of Mastic 1 tablespoon Mahlab Method: Place the flour, mastic and mahlab in a big bowl …