One year ago, right before Christmas, I discovered a recipe for some Italian almond cookies by Nonna Fina. They turned out so great that they became a popular treat in our family. I adapted my ricciarelli recipe; you could try it out these Holidays!

You need:

225g almond flour

150g sugar

2 egg whites (room temperature)

*Vegan ricciarelli are possible, with 6 tbsp of water + 2 tbsp of psyllium or flaxseeds.

a dash of salt

the lemon zest from half a lemon

3 drops of almond extract (optional)

How to bake them?

Beat the egg whites with the salt. Add the almond extract if you decide to use it.

In a separate dish, mix the almond flour, sugar, and lemon zest.

Add the foam to the mix; stir easily. The dough will be slightly sticky.

Split the dough into two parts; shape them into two rolls. Cut the dough slices with a knife. Shape them into diamonds. Then, place them into a baking pan lined with baking parchment. You will get 13-14 ricciarelli from a roll.

Bake them for 15-20 minutes at 180°C. After 10 minutes, supervise them so you don’t burn them. ;-)

Enjoy them! ♥

Upon our first trip to Scotland, our host in Edinburgh served us these treats at breakfast. When he saw how much we liked them, he gave us a bagful.

We munched them at the airport; we didn’t want to let them fall into the wrong hands.

Marcel made them once; it was my turn. I adapted the recipe considering my tastes and heart. In Scotland, they use golden syrup to make flapjacks; I preferred maple syrup.

Baking pan—

24 x 34 cm

Ingredients—

225g butter

100g coconut sugar

50g maple syrup

450g gluten-free oats

salt

Method—

Melt the butter; add the coconut sugar, the maple syrup, the gluten-free oats, and the salt.

Pour the batter into the baking pan lined with baking parchment.

Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven at 190°C.

Cut them immediately after removing the baking pan from the oven; then, let them cool entirely. Otherwise, they would crack.

Marcel and I got hooked on them.

I hope you like them, too!

• Spring version

Dough:

200g flour

5g fresh yeast

100ml buttermilk

salt

Filling:

2 orach bunches

salt

butter

1 green garlic

+1 small egg

Variant: Add ewe cheese on top of the filling if you wish.

• Fall version

Dough:

240g flour

5g fresh yeast

160g sour cream

salt

Filling:

300g orach

salt

butter

1 pestled garlic clove

+2 tbsp of milk

Baking pan: 20x20 cm

Orach was the ingredient of this year for me! I fell in love! I felt lucky to be able to bake this orach pie in spring and fall!

The recipes are almost similar. To make the dough, mix the yeast with the buttermilk or the sour cream, adding the required amount of flour. You’ll get a non-sticky dough, slightly hard. Let it rise for 1 hour. 

Then (a kind man named Marcel helped me), wash the orach leaves. Be careful, that pink liquid stains (I used red orach). Let the orach leaves simmer in butter; add the salt, the green garlic or the garlic clove, depending on the season.

Roll out half of the dough in a buttered and floured baking pan. Add the filling and the ewe cheese if you wish. Then, add the other half of the rolled-out dough and stick the two pieces together.

Brush the egg or milk on top of the pie, then bake it in the preheated oven at 180°C for 20 minutes. 

Shells

170g flour

2 tbsp of sugar

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

1 tbsp of cocoa powder

1 tbsp of butter

1 small egg

3 tbsp of Port (if you don’t have Marsala)

Filling

325g ricotta

130g sugar

for 8 cannoli

I don’t like the scent of burnt oil in the house; on the other hand, I was craving cannoli. I’m thinking, ’Could I bake them?’.

I had prepared the filling the previous night, draining ricotta and mixing it with the sugar.

To make the cannoli shells, mix the flour, sugar, cinnamon, cocoa, butter, and egg. To give them their typical flavour, add 3 tablespoons of Port if you lack the classical Marsala.

Knead until you have a compact dough (insist until all the ingredients are fully incorporated!). Let it sit in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Divide the dough into 8 balls. Then, crush them and roll them out. Draw circles using a 12cm-diametre bowl. Cut them out. Wrap them around the cannoli tubes. Use a few drops of water to stick the ends.

Place the cannoli tubes into a baking pan. Then, bake in the preheated oven at 180°C for 15 minutes.

By using a piping bag, fill the shells with the ricotta and sugar mixture.

Tip: I prefer filling the shells every time we have cannoli, keeping the piping bag in a mug in the fridge.

 

What to use for two portions?

2 small and ripe bananas

60ml milk

30g butter

60g flour

3g baking powder

a pinch of salt

a fistful of raisins

How to bake it?

Mash the bananas using a fork. Then, add the milk, melted butter, flour, baking powder, salt, and raisins.

Pour half of the batter into one ramekin and the rest into another.

Bake in the preheated oven at 180°C for 25-30 minutes (depending on the fluffiness of the pudding).

makes 130 bezele

4 egg whites

200g sugar

1 tbsp of vinegar

a pinch of salt

When I have more egg whites than needed, my thought flies to my Mom’s bezele recipe.

Here it is!

Take the egg whites out of the fridge. When they sit at room temperature, their foam will be richer.

Mix them with the sugar, adding it bit by bit. Then, mix in the vinegar [it will make the foam ’sit’ and the bezele feel glossy] and the salt.

Fill a pastry bag with the foam and draw bezele. Make a circle, letting the foam flow, then lift the pastry bag.

I got 2 large baking pans and a small one.

Bake in the preheated oven at 110°C for 30 minutes.

They’ll be crunchy for 2-3 days in closed bowls or bags.

That is, if you don’t eat them in the meantime. 😊

I wanted to try a vegan pască for a long time! It was the idea of my dear Ana Maria, the soul of NoMoMoo. You can try it, too, this year, multiply the amounts, and test its round version [in our family, pasca has always been square and flat 😊].

I hope you like it!

Serve it directly from the fridge!

[a 20x20 cm baking pan, but I recommend a 15x15 cm one]

You will need:

140g Cajoont

40g cashew sour cream

3 tbsp of [spring] water

1 tbsp of psyllium seeds

40g agave syrup

25g raisins

4 tbsp of flour

4 tbsp of semolina

+Cajoont, semolina -> baking pan

Bake away:

Let the delicious NoMoMoo products reach room temperature.

The psyllium seeds should sit in the water for at least 5 minutes.

Mix the ingredients listed above with the agave syrup, the raisins, the flour, and the semolina. Save a small amount of Cajoont and a little bit of semolina to ’butter and flour’ the baking pan; do it.

Then, pour the batter into the baking pan and bake for 25 minutes in the preheated oven at 170°C.

Let it cool well.

Another suggestion: let it sit in the fridge for 3-4 hours before savouring it.

Happy and tranquil Easter to you! ♥

I fell in love with this cake in Lebanon (I have a special relationship with ’ashta’, the cream used everywhere in Phoenicia, anyway). I baked it for the first time on my birthday in 2023, adapting it (it’s not easy to bake with semolina!); I kept preparing it. This is what happens when a result is tasty!

For the cream:

In a large baking pan, mix and boil (low heat)

530ml whipping cream

420ml milk

67g flour

5 tbsp of sugar + 135g sugar

Before removing it from the heat, add a drop of

orange blossom water

rose water

You’ve made ashta.

Continue with the dough. 

In a bowl, mix

330g semolina

100g coconut or date sugar

3g baking powder

a pinch of salt

4 tbsp of sour cream

150g (melted and slightly cooled) butter

Divide the (sticky) dough into two equal parts; place the first part on the baking parchment by pressing fragments of the dough into the 34x24cm baking pan. (Don’t worry; it will all get homogenous through baking.) 

Sprinkle as many crushed pistachios as you like. 

Pour the ashta. 

Add another layer of crushed pistachios. 

Then, spread pieces of the remaining layer on top of the cake.

Bake for 25 minutes in the preheated oven at 180°C.

Cool in the fridge for at least 3 hours.

Savour it. It is a creamy and delicious cake, one of my favourite desserts ever! ♥

On Ciuchi’s second anniversary in our home, we disregarded the part of the detox connected to all types of nuts (yes, the detox was difficult!) and baked her a fine dessert (there were still strawberries available; we had strawberries until December anyway!). She runs the entire house, so she deserves everything! ♥

Use and shape as follows—

🥄 The shells

1 & ½ tbsp of psyllium seeds -> 5’ in 2 tbsp of hot water

60g gluten-free oatmeal

30g tapioca flour

a pinch of sea salt

30g Cajoont

1 tbsp of apple vinegar

Knead • Divide into 6 tartlet moulds • Cover with baking parchment • Place baking beads above • Bake for 25’ at 170°C

🥄 The filling

1 x Caju Fresh from NoMoMoo (the star ingredient)

4 tbsp of maple syrup

an organic lemon’s zest

🍓 Decorate with strawberry slices

May you live long, Ciuchi! ♥

P.S.

You can fill the above tartlets with chocolate and decorate them with raspberries; they are delicious!

🥄 Filling 2

140g vegan chocolate

50g Cajoont

10g Svmântână

100g raspberries

15g almond flakes

It is easy: melt the chocolate (bain-marie); then, mix in the cashew butter and sour cream from NoMoMoo. Fill the tartlet shells. Decorate with raspberries; the almond flakes are such a nice addition.

If there’s a dish I baked most last summer (even at the beginning of fall), this was it! It was even appropriate during our detox (or I made it so)! The cherry tomatoes you're using must be delicious!

The ingredients needed for a round baking pan of Φ 22 cm are:

(for the) FILLING

350g cherry tomatoes

1 teaspoon of dried thyme

1 & ½ tbsp of maple syrup

15g butter

+ 1 medium onion

+ 1 tbsp of butter

(for the) CRUST

1 tbsp of psyllium seeds

2 tbsp of (hot) water

125g gluten-free oatmeal

25g tapioca flour

60g (melted and cooled) butter

1 tbsp of apple vinegar

a pinch of sea salt

Wash the cherry tomatoes and place them in the baking pan. Sprinkle the thyme. Pour over the maple syrup. Cut out small pieces of butter and sprinkle them all over the cherry tomatoes.

Place the baking pan in the preheated oven for 14 minutes at 190°C.

Then, let it cool.

Meanwhile, clean the onion, chop it, and fry it in butter. Then, add it over the cherry tomatoes.

Make the crust using the recipe here.

Roll out the crust and cover the cherry tomatoes, ensuring you tuck the dough under the tomatoes.

Bake it in the preheated oven for 20 minutes at 170°C.

It was, in fact, my birthday cake. I hope you like it! (I tried it in summer when the tiny Cancerians turned 1 – and I used berries to decorate it.)

(for the) CRUST

1 tbsp of psyllium seeds

2 tbsp of (hot) water

125g gluten-free oatmeal

25g tapioca flour

60g (melted and cooled) butter

1 tbsp of apple vinegar

a pinch of sea salt

(for the) FILLING

140g condensed milk

70g whipping cream

210ml milk

2 tbsp of tapioca flour

+1 large pear

3-4 strawberries

2-3 tamarind pods

Make the crust using the recipe here.

Let the crust cool.

Meanwhile, make the filling. Add all the ingredients to the pan and let the mixture boil.

Pour the filling into the crust; decorate with pear and strawberry slices and tamarind paste.

 Let it sit in the fridge for at least 2-3 hours. Then, savour it! ♥