Sparkling Ink

{ cinnamon chocolate nuts }

Slow down, kick back and relax.
Have a warm Christmas time with lots of laughter, enjoying all the wonders of the season!

Cinnamon chocolate nuts (7 ounces)

- 7 ounces (200 g) walnuts and almonds
- 4 ounces (115 g) dark chocolate
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1/2 tablespoon cocoa powder

Toast walnuts in 300 F (150 C) oven until fragrant. Let cool completely. Melt roughly chopped chocolate in a bowl over steaming pot of water on low heat. Stir on heat until melted and smooth. Toss the walnuts and almonds a few at a time in the melted chocolate, and transfer onto a parchment paper to set.

Mix cinnamon and cocoa powder in a small freezer bag. Toss the set chocolate covered nuts in the powder until evenly coated.

{ recipe adapted from Green Kitchen Stories }

{ chocolate fruitcake }

Fruitcake is not usually my favorite but I still want to make one every Christmas. I have been testing and combining different recipes over the years, and this year, I'm especially pleased with the result. In addition to chocolate fruitcake, you could as easily call this recipe boiled cake. The trick of the flavorful and fragrant cake is that the batter is all prepared in a pot and boiled gently before baking it in the oven.

You can choose your own favorite combination of dried fruit. My mixture was dried apricots, raisins, dates and cherries. Cocoa powder gives the cake an incredibly smooth chocolaty flavor. For a finishing touch, the cake gets a delicate layer of powdered sugar on top. I used a homemade paper snowflakes as a stencil to make the fruitcake look as Christmasy as it tastes like.

Ingredients (16 pieces)

- 3 cups (7 dl) dried fruit
- 1 cup (2 1/2 dl) brown sugar
- 4 1/2 ounces (125 g) butter
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- generous pinch of nutmeg
- 1 1/2 cup (3 1/2 dl) cold water
- 1/2 cup (1 1/4 dl) freshly squeezed orange juice
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups (5 dl) flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- powdered sugar for dusting

Roughly chop the dried fruit. Combine dried fruit, brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, cold water and orange juice in a large pot. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. Reduce the heat a bit and simmer gently for 25 minutes.

Remove from heat and mix in baking soda. Let it bubble and cool for 10 minutes stirring a few times. Add in eggs one at a time and mix. Combine flour, baking powder and cocoa powder and stir in the batter. Scoop the batter into a greased cake pan (around 11 inch, 28 cm) and smooth out the top. Bake at 320 F (160 C) for over an hour until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the top has browned beautifully. Allow to cool and remove from the pan.

Cut a snowflake stencil from paper, and place it on top of the cake. Dust the cake with powdered sugar and remove the stencil.

 

{ holiday bread pudding }

To me, bread pudding is the most inviting and cozy winter dessert. I thought I would do some brainstorming of how bread pudding could dress up for the holidays. I love the result. Chocolate, nuts, currants and powdered sugar make the classic dish beautifully festive. You can find this recipe and much more Christmas inspiration in the new issue of G2K. One week to go until Christmas. Can't wait.

Holiday bread pudding (serves 6-8)

- 8 slices white bread
- 450 ml (2 cups) milk
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 130 g (4 1/2 ounces) chocolate
- 2 eggs
- 100 g (3 1/2 ounces) sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- a pinch of nutmeg
- pecans, currants, chocolate shavings for the top
- powdered sugar for dusting

Toast bread slices at 150 C for 10 minutes until crispy. Tear the bread into pieces and transfer into a greased oven dish. Heat milk, butter and 100 g chocolate in a sauce pan stirring constantly just until melted. Remove from heat. In a bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar and vanilla sugar. Add in cinnamon and nutmeg. Mix in the milk chocolate mixture and pour over the bread.

Bake at 150 C for 25-30 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes and decorate with pecans and currants. Shave the remaining chocolate and sprinkle on top. Dust with powdered sugar.

 

{ chili jam }

Homemade food gifts are the best. I love to try a new gourmet gift recipe every year. This year, I fell in love with the idea of bright red and spicy chili jam. The small specks of chili make the jam jar look like a red snowglobe. With other holiday preparations going on, making the jam is completely stress-free. Food processor and sugar including pectin make the process quick and simple. The jam is delicious served with a cheese platter or on cold meats like turkey and ham.

Ingredients (makes 1.5 liter, 6-8 small jars)

- 150 g (5.5 ounces) red chili peppers, roughly chopped and deseeded
- 150 g (5.5 ounces) red bell peppers, roughly chopped and deseeded
- 1 kg (2.2 pounds) jam sugar (pectin added sugar)
- 600 ml (2.5 cups) cider vinegar
- clean jam jars

Wash the jars in a dish washer. Cut chili and red peppers into rough chunks and deseed them. If you'd like to make a milder version, reduce the amount of chili and add more bell pepper. Transfer the chunks in a food processor, and pulse until very finely chopped.

Mix jam sugar and cider vinegar in a large pot, and place over medium-low heat until the sugar dissolves without stirring. Scoop the chili and red pepper flakes into the pot and stir. Turn the heat up a bit, and boil for 15 minutes. Peel off any foam from the surface. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 30-40 minutes.

Stir to see if the liquid has turned more syrupy. The jam is ready to be poured into the jars when the red flakes don't settle in the bottom of the pot. Seal the jars tightly, let cool in room temperature and refrigerate.

{ recipe adapted from Nigella Lawson }

 

{ mulled apple cider }

Hope you have enjoyed the beginning of December. We have got so much snow. I went Christmas shopping yesterday. Oh, the city looked amazing under a thick layer of snow with all the lights. This simple mulled apple cider warms up the night. I just love its invitingly cozy scent of the holidays.

Ingredients (serves 6-8)

- 2 liters (8 cups) apple cider
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1/2 vanilla bean
- 4 cloves
- a pinch of nutmeg
- juice of 2 clementines
- zest of 1/2 lemon
- 3 tablespoon cane sugar

Pour cider into a pan. Add cinnamon stick, half vanilla pod, cloves and nutmeg. Squeeze in the juice of 2 clementines and shave a few slices of lemon zest in. Add sugar and mix. Heat until steaming but not boiling. Run the cider through a sieve and serve hot.

 

{ cranberry almond biscotti }

Baking is a lovely way to begin the countdown to Christmas. This biscotti with beautiful spots of cranberries and almonds taste and look like the holidays. Wrap them pretty, and they give anyone a big smile as a homemade gift. Happy beginning of December!

Ingredients (makes 24-30)

- 3/4 cup (2 dl) dried cranberries
- 1 cup (3 dl) hot water
- 3 cups (7 1/2 dl) flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons (60 g) butter, room temperature
- 1 cup (2 1/2 dl) sugar
- 3 eggs + 1 for brushing
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (2 1/2 dl) almonds

Cover cranberries with hot water. Let stand for 10-15 minutes until the berries are soft. Drain and set aside. Combine flour, baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, beat soft butter and sugar until fluffy using an electric mixer. Add in eggs one at a time and beat until combined. Mix in vanilla. Add in dry ingredient mixture, and stir just until combined. Mix in cranberries and almonds.

Form two flattened bars (a bit more than an inch, 3 cm thick) onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush with lightly beaten egg and sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 350 F (175 C) for 30 minutes until the bars are golden and firm to the touch. Reduce the oven temperature down to 300 F (150 C).

Allow the bars to cool for a few minutes. Cut the bars into 1/2 inch (1.5 cm) wide slices. Flip the biscotti a cut side down and sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 300 F (150 C) for around 10 minutes or until crispy.

 

{ pecan apple salad }

This is my favorite salad at the moment. So simple, so cruncy and full of flavors of the season - pecan, apple, orange and mustard. Works lovely with leftover turkey and other cold meats. Happy weekend!

Ingredients (serves 4)

- 2-3 apples
- 100 g pecans
- salad mix (such as radicchio, arugula and frisee)

{ dressing }
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1 orange, zest and juice
- coarse salt & pepper

Slice the apples. Toast pecan quickly on a pan over medium heat until fragrant for a few minutes. Wash and dry the salad mix of your choice. Zest and juice washed orange. Mix dressing ingredients. Toss and dress the salad.

 

{ vanilla mashed sweet potatoes }

So much to be thankful for. Wish we could gather around the same table with the other half of our family across the ocean. We are thinking about you. (And would love to share these vanilla mashed sweet potatoes with you.) Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, everyone!

Ingredients (generously serves 4)

- 1 1/2 pounds (700 g) sweet potatoes
- 1/2 cup (1.25 dl) cream
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla paste or 1/3 vanilla bean
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
(- coarse salt & pepper)

Bake sweet potatoes at 350 F (175 C) for about an hour until soft to a fork tip. Let cool a bit and remove the skins. Puree using a stick blender or a food processor.

Pour cream into a sauce pan and add in vanilla. If you are using vanilla bean, cut it in half lengthwise. Heat over medium heat, and let simmer for 5 minutes. Discard the vanilla bean.

Pour the cream in with the sweet potato puree. Add in butter and run the blender until smooth. Taste and season with salt and pepper if desired. Serve warm as a side dish.

{ recipe adapted from 101 cookbooks }

 

{ italian tiramisu }

When an Italian shows you how to make an authentic tiramisu, you know you are learning something great. This surprisingly easy recipe is the way Juls and her family make tiramisu, and always have. The ratio between the three main ingredients is key in this recipe. 1 egg and 1 tablespoon of sugar to 100 g of mascarpone. This makes the recipe easy to multiply and adjust to any size for any occasion. Tiramisu cookies, fresh espresso, dark chocolate and sweet wine work like magic together creating the true flavor of this classic dessert. It's the best tiramisu I have ever had - thank you, Juls!

Ingredients (serves 8)

- 4 good quality eggs
- 4 tablespoons sugar
- 400 g mascarpone
- 2-3 tablespoon sweet wine (f.e Vin Santo or Sherry)
- 7 ounces (200 g) tiramisu cookies (ladyfingers)
- 1/2 cup (1 1/4 dl) espresso or strong coffee
- 2.5 ounces (70 g) dark chocolate
- 3-4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

Separate egg whites and yolks into two bowls. Add sugar in yolks and whisk until light and foamy, and until the sugar has dissolved. Add mascarpone and mix until smooth.

Beat egg whites until firm peaks form. Mix egg whites in the mascarpone mixture. Pour in sweet wine of your choice and mix. Vin Santo is a lovely Italian alternative.

Spoon mascarpone foam on the bottom of a large dish. Sprinkle with roughly chopped dark chocolate. Dip cookies lightly in espresso on both sides, and place them on top of the first layer. Spoon more foam on top and sprinkle with chocolate. Repeat for a few times leaving a mascarpone layer last. Sift cocoa powder generously on top. Let sit in the fridge for a few hours before serving.

 

{ tuscan flavors }

Tuscan atmosphere, people and cuisine leave no one cold. I'm completely smitten with the simplicity and amazing flavors of Tuscan cooking. During the vacation in the Tuscan countryside and Florence, we had lots of incredible food and wine. These are some of my favorite food memories from Tuscany.

A simple breakfast with croissant, homemade apricot jam and cappuccino or homemade espresso (Moka). Lunch is often soup or pasta. Tuscan vegetable and white bean soup (Ribollita) and handmade thick pasta with wild boar sauce (Pici al ragu di cinghiale). The best street food are sandwiches with good quality meat and cheese, and of course the world famous Italian ice cream (Gelato). We made lots of food at home too. Marinated artichokes, zucchini risotto, tomato and garlic spaghetti, pumpkin and chestnut ravioli, mushroom lasagna and tiramisu. A DIY wine tasting. Lots of laughter and many bottles of great wine.

Dinner with all the courses - antipasti (starter), primi (first course), secondi (main course) and dolci (dessert). Chianti Classico, a typical Tuscan red wine. Antipasto platter with different types of meat (Salumi) and cheese like Pecorino, traditional crostini with chicken liver topping (Crostini di Fegatini di Pollo), spinach and ricotta ravioli with sage butter (Ravioli di spinaci e ricotta con burro e salvia), homemade pork sausages and white beans, slow cooked duck, panna cotta and Tuscan almond cookies (Cantuccini) dipped in dessert wine (Vin Santo).

We came home with three bags of Italian food and ingredients and even more of ideas and inspiration. Oh, the effect Tuscany has on you! My stomach and mind are full of simply delicious food.