Black Cherry & Raspberry Tiramisu

Tiramisu…not something I have made many times. Well to be precise this is the first time I have ever made it. Easy as to make as well. this may not be a traditional tiramisu ( most don’t have fruit) as they tend to be more espresso flavoured but as a dessert it certainly hit the spot. As rich as it looks it was quite unusual as the prominent flavours were the espresso and the fruit. You use marscapone rather than cream so you have the creamy texture but not the sweetness of cream. If you dip the savoiardi for just the right time in the espresso they stay firm inside but soft and gooyey outside, they should end up like good sponge cake inside when chilled. The black cherries come from a can and the raspberries are fresh and I also grated milk chocolate in for a little sugar hit. We were supposed to have it as dessert last weekend when we had a fellow yachtie over for dinner. How ever after the ocean trout and seared scallop entree and the crispy skinned duck breast main we just couldn’t fit in. Several bottles of chilled Mc Williams Fruitwood Red didn’t help the matter either. It made a nice week day treat for Paula and I.

What A Tart…

 This is why you should always keep puff pastry in your freezer. A couple of days earlier I had opened a large tin of peach slices and only used about half of them. This night we had only had a small meal so mid evening I decided to make a dessert. I opened the fridge and it was all” mother hubberded”, except for the left over peaches and various tubs of fresh cream, creme fraiche and sour cream…why? Anyway I knew I had pastry frozen so I decided to make this Peach and Caramel Sauce Tart. Too easy, just a sheet of puff pastry lay out peach slices and drizzle over caramel sauce and bake until golden. I made the caramel sauce but caramel topping or pre-made caramel in a tin will do. And we went with just fresh cream poured over the tart.

Hayberrys and vanilla Panacotta

 This is the same Panacotta I’ve made and posted  before, other than this time I found a way to make it just a bit more decadent. I had a packet of chocolate bottomed Butternut Snaps so I blitzed them with a little butter and made a biscuit base. I added this to the molds of panacotta once they had set, it was just the texture that it needed. Again its a strawberry couli, strawberries are ridiculously cheap, four punnets for $5. These would have to be one of the easiest desserts to make and you get a lot of warm fuzzy from your achievement. Equal parts natural (I use Greek) yoghurt and full cream milk ( you can use skim etc but don’t get the same consistency) one whole vanilla bean pod, seeds scraped and added to milk and 2/3rds to one cup of sugar. Put into a pot and bring to just below a boil and then simmer gently for five minutes. Remove from the heat and stand while you mix 1tablespoon of gelatine with about 1/2 cup of hot water until dissolved then whisk geletine mixture thoroughly through milk and yoghurt. Pour into molds, ramakans or here I used take away coffee cups, if not using teflon molds, lightly grease with butter or oil. Put in the fridge for a couple of hours or until set. Viola, you have just made your own Panacotta. Couli is equal parts sugar and water heat and reduce add a punnet of sliced Hayberrys simmer 10-15minutes.

Vanilla Bean Panacotta with Strawberry Couli

I bought a tub of Greek Yoghurt and wasn’t quite sure what I was going to do with it until we got fresh Strawberries at the supermarket.
I decided to make Panacotta with Strawberry Couli. I got the yoghurt, gelatine, milk, cream, vanilla bean pod, sugar etc mixed it all in the pot and started heating it. I started a sugar syryp and sliced fresh strawberries into it and got it simmering away. Then I went for the ramakans to put it in. Then I remember the last time I used a ramakan was in a restaurant and I didn’t have any at home…bugger! So the ones you see here were moulded in a combination of Coffee cup, egg cup and the upturned citrus juicer. Paula got the pretty one but I got the big one, the dogs loved it too.

Sweet Dreams are Made of These

Caramalised Red Rum Bananas…this was a spur of the moment, not much in the fridge creation.
Late evening sugar demands are satiated by fresh bananas pan fried in a red rum butter and then caramalised in a light praline and served with homemade softserve. Gauranteed to please even the sweetest tooth.